Posted by In a previous topic on the German passive voice, I explicitly explained what it means for a voice to be passive, how it can be made passive, when it can be used and why it should even be used at all. In this topic, I have further explained the inclusion of a modal verb in a passive sentence.
Recall that a passive sentence/voice can be formed with either werden or sein depending on whether it is ‘Vorgangspassiv‘ or ‘Zustandspassiv‘ respectively. In the case of passive with modal verbs, it is only formed with werden. This means that the German modal verbs can only be used in the ‘Vorgangspassiv’ or processual passive voice.
| Content in this post |
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| 1. Quick revision on what a passive voice is and their different types 2. Passive Voice with modal verbs in present tense 3. How to make passive sentences with modal verbs in present tense 4. Passive Voice with modal verbs in Präteritum 5. How to make passive sentences with modal verbs in Präteritum |
A passive voice is usually formed with a modal verb to either show politeness or suggestions and can only be expressed in the present and past tense. when expressed in the present/ past tense, the modal verbs are conjugated in the second position to the object turned subject while the auxiliary verb werden which means “be” here, goes to the end of the sentence in its finite form directly after the Partizip II. Hence, the structure of a passive sentence with a modal verb becomes “Modalverb + … + Partizip II + werden”.
German passive voice with modal verbs in the present tense
In the present tense, the modal verbs are conjugated in the present tense and maintain their meanings as illustrated below.
| Pronouns | Müssen | Können | Dürfen | Sollen | Wollen | Mögen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich du er/sie/es wir ihr sie/Sie | muss musst muss müssen müsst müssen | kann kannst kann können könnt können | darf darfst darf dürfen dürft dürfen | soll sollst soll sollen sollt sollen | will willst will wollen wollt wollen | mag magst mag mögen mögt mögen |
| Meaning | must/have to | can/ be able to | may/ allowed or permitted to | should/ supposed to | desire/ want (to) | like (to) |
| German | Translation |
|---|---|
| 1. Die alten Häuser sollen gemalt werden. | The old houses should be painted. |
| 2. Du musst von Sara beobachtet werden. | You have to be observed by Sara. |
| 3. Das Auto kann nicht repariert werden. | The car can not be repaired. |
German passive voice with modal verbs in the past tense
In the past, the passive voice of modal verbs is often expressed in the simple past tense which is called Präteritum in German. Expressions in the perfect tense could be possible but then is more complex and not used. See illustration in the präteritum below;
| Pronouns | Müssen | Können | Dürfen | Sollen | Wollen | Mögen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich du er/sie/es wir ihr sie/Sie | musste musstest musste mussten musstet mussten | konnte konntest konnte konnten konntet konnten | durfte durftest durfte durften durftet durften | sollte solltest sollte sollten solltet sollten | wollte wolltest wollte wollten wolltet wollten | mochte mochtest mochte mochten mochtet mochten |
| German | English Translation |
|---|---|
| 1. Das Auto konnte nicht von Mario gekauft werden. | The car could not be bought by Mario. |
| 2. Warum wolltest du zum Museen gebracht werden? | Why did you want to be taken to the museum? |
| 3. Du solltest dich für die Prüfung vorbereitet werden. | You were supposed to be prepared for the exam. |