In this comparative grammar lesson of Romance languages, we study the passive voice and impersonal expressions in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French.
Table of Contents
- Passive Voice Using “to be” Verb
- Reflexive Passive Constructions
- Impersonal Constructions
- Passive Voice Using the Pronoun “On” in French
- Level VI – Fluent
Passive Voice Using “to be” Verb
One way to describe something in the passive voice is by moving the noun acted upon to the beginning of the sentence to emphasize it and using a “to be” verb followed by the adjective or the past participle. For example:
| SP | El tejido fue hecho de material reciclado (por la fábrica). | The textile was made from recycled material (by the factory). |
| PT | O tecido foi feito com material reciclado (pela fábrica). | |
| IT | Il tessuto è stato realizzato con materiale riciclato (dalla fabbrica). | |
| FR | Le tissu a été fabriqué à partir de matériaux recyclés (par l’usine). | |
| SP | El contrato será firmado (por la empresa). | The contract will be signed (by the company). |
| PT | O contrato será assinado (pela empresa). | |
| IT | Il contratto sarà firmato (dalla società). | |
| FR | Le contrat sera signé (par l’entreprise). |
The performer of the action in the above two examples, denoted by “por…” in Spanish and Portuguese, “da…” in Italian, and “par …” in French, all meaning “by …,” can be omitted because it is deemed not to be of great significance.
In French, the preposition “de” is used to denote the agent if the agent plays a less active role, for example:
| Le bâtiment est encerclé d’un mur. | The building is surrounded by a wall. |
| Le bâtiment est encerclé par des soldats. | The building is surrounded by soldiers. |
In the two examples above, notice that the agent plays a less active role in the first example. Thus, we use the proposition “de.” On the other hand, we use “par” in the second example to highlight the active role of the agent.
The preposition “de” is commonly used in French to denote the agent with verbs that express emotion or opinion.
| Il est aimé de tous ses voisins. | He is liked by all his neighbors. |
| Cette idée est appréciée des élèves. | This idea is appreciated by the students. |
Reflexive Passive Constructions
Another way to construct the passive voice in Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian is by using the reflexive passive pronoun “se” in Spanish and Portuguese or “si” in Italian with transitive verbs. The transitive verb is in the third-person singular or plural form, depending on the noun which follows the verb.
| SP | “Se” + third-person transitive verb (sing. or pl.) + noun (sing. or pl.) |
| PT | Third-person transitive verb (sing. or pl.)-“se” + noun (sing. or pl.) |
| IT | “Si” + third-person transitive verb (sing. or pl.) + noun (sing. or pl.) |
This is the passive construction you are likely to encounter in ads, commercials, or when the performer of the action is unknown or not as important. For example:
| SP | Se buscan personas con experiencia. | Wanted people with experience. |
| PT | Procuram-se pessoas com experiência. | |
| IT | Si ricercano persone con esperienza. | |
| SP | Se venden celulares aquí. | Cell phones are sold here. |
| PT | Vendem-se telemóveis aqui. | |
| IT | Qui si vendono i cellulari. | |
| SP | En Egipto, se habla árabe. | In Egypt, they speak Arabic. |
| PT | No Egito, fala-se o árabe. | |
| IT | In Egitto, si parla l’arabo. |
Notice that only transitive verbs can be used to construct sentences using the reflexive passive pronoun, and the noun that follows the third-person verb can represent thing(s) or person(s).
In French, some pronominal verbs are used in a manner similar to reflexive verbs to convey the passive voice. The following are some examples:
| Ça se voit. | It shows. |
| Ça ne se fait pas. | That is not done (We don’t do that). |
| Ça ne se dit pas. | That is not said (We don’t say that). |
| La porte s’ouvre facilement. | The door is easy to open. |
| Comment ça se répare? | How is this repaired? |
Impersonal Constructions
In English, we sometimes make general statements, such as:
We work better as a team.
They sleep early in the village.
It feels better without social pressure.
One is happier alone than in bad company.
One must follow the rules.
Notice that in the above sentences, we used the subject pronouns (we, they, it, and one) to convey a general meaning. For instance, the subject “we” in the sentence “We work better as a team” does not necessarily refer to the speaker(s) but rather refers to the general fact that humans work better as a team rather than individually. In other words, work is better done as a team.
Notice also that the verbs “to work” and “to sleep” are intransitive, meaning that they do not need an object for the meaning to be complete. On the other hand, “to feel,” “must,” and “to be” are copular verbs, meaning they connect a subject to an adjective, adverb, noun, or phrase. Examples of copular verbs include: seem, feel, appear, look, become, taste, get, sound, turn, grow, and find.
In Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, there is a special way to express such observations or statements using the third-person conjugation of the verb and the pronoun “se” in Spanish and Portuguese or “si” in Italian. Because the subject is undefined, we call this construction impersonal. The construction is made as follows:
| SP | “Se” + third-person intransitive or copular verb (always singular) |
| PT | Third-person intransitive or copular verb (always singular)-“se” |
| IT | “Si” + third-person intransitive verb (singular) “Si” + third-person copular verb (singular) + adjective (plural) |
Here are some examples:
| SP | Se trabaja mejor en equipo. | We work better as a team. |
| PT | Trabalha-se melhor em equipe. | |
| IT | Si lavora meglio in una squadra. | |
| SP | Se duerme temprano en el pueblo. | They sleep early in the village. |
| PT | Dorme-se cedo na cidade pequena. | |
| IT | Si dorme presto al villaggio. | |
| SP | No se viaja solo lejos. | One does not travel far alone. |
| PT | Não se viaja muito sozinho. | |
| IT | Non si viaggia lontano da soli. | |
| SP | Se debe seguir las reglas. | One must follow the traffic. |
| PT | Deve-se seguir as regras. | |
| IT | Si devono seguire le regole. | |
| SP | Se está más feliz solo que mal acompañado. | One is happier alone than in bad company. |
| PT | Está-se mais feliz sozinho que mal acompanhado. | |
| IT | Si è più felici da soli che in cattiva compagnia. |
In Spanish and Portuguese, notice that the verb is always singular regardless of any implicit assumptions about the subject, which is grammatically absent.
In Italian, notice that if a copular verb falls between the impersonal “si” and an adjective, the adjective must be in plural form.
Passive Voice Using the Pronoun “On” in French
It is common to use the third-person singular pronoun “on” to construct the passive voice in French, especially in daily speech.
In this context, the subject pronoun “on” can mean “we,” “one,” or “they,” e.g., “On parle francais ici” (We/They speak French here) means “French is spoken here.”
Next: Idiomatic Pronominal Verbs
Back to: Comparative Grammar Lessons
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