Active and Passive Voice in Arabic
Learn how to form and recognize active and passive voice in Arabic, including verb pattern changes, vowel shifts, and real-world usage examples.
Table of Contents
One of the most elegant features of Arabic grammar is the way the language handles active and passive voice. Unlike English, which typically uses a helping verb (is, was, were) to form the passive, Arabic achieves the same effect through internal vowel changes within the verb itself. Once you understand the underlying logic, the Arabic passive voice becomes surprisingly systematic and even beautiful.
In this guide, we'll break down exactly how active and passive voice work in Arabic, walk through the key verb forms, and give you plenty of examples to solidify your understanding.
What Is Voice in Grammar?
Before diving into Arabic specifically, let's quickly define what grammatical voice means.
- Active voice: The subject performs the action. (The teacher explained the lesson.)
- Passive voice: The subject receives the action. (The lesson was explained.)
In English, we signal passive voice with auxiliary verbs. In Arabic, the transformation is internal — the verb's own vowel pattern changes to signal the shift from active to passive. This is part of the broader Arabic root system, which is worth exploring if you haven't already.
If you're new to Arabic grammar overall, check out our Arabic Grammar Basics: A Beginner's Roadmap to Mastering the Language before continuing.
Active Voice in Arabic
In Arabic, the active voice (المبني للمعلوم — al-mabnī lil-maʿlūm, meaning "built for the known") is the default form of a verb. The subject is known and is doing the action.
Basic Structure
The simplest Arabic verb root follows the فَعَلَ (faʿala) pattern — a three-letter root with the vowels a-a-a.
| Arabic | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| كَتَبَ | kataba | He wrote |
| فَتَحَ | fataḥa | He opened |
| دَرَسَ | darasa | He studied |
| قَرَأَ | qaraʾa | He read |
In these examples, the subject is clear — a third-person singular masculine subject ("he") is performing the action.
Example sentence:
كَتَبَ الطَّالِبُ الرِّسَالَةَ Kataba al-ṭālibu al-risālata. The student wrote the letter. (Active)
Here, al-ṭālibu (the student) is the subject (فاعل — fāʿil) performing the action, and al-risālata (the letter) is the object (مفعول به — mafʿūl bihi) receiving the action.
The Arabic Passive Voice
The Arabic passive voice (المبني للمجهول — al-mabnī lil-majhūl, meaning "built for the unknown") is formed by changing the internal vowels of the verb — no auxiliary verb needed. The agent (doer) is either unknown, unimportant, or intentionally omitted.
How the Vowel Change Works
For the past tense (الماضي), the passive is formed by changing the vowel pattern of the active verb:
- Active pattern: فَعَلَ (faʿala) → vowels: a - a - a
- Passive pattern: فُعِلَ (fuʿila) → vowels: u - i - a
| Active (فَعَلَ) | Passive (فُعِلَ) | Meaning (Passive) |
|---|---|---|
| كَتَبَ (kataba) | كُتِبَ (kutiba) | It was written |
| فَتَحَ (fataḥa) | فُتِحَ (futiḥa) | It was opened |
| دَرَسَ (darasa) | دُرِسَ (durisa) | It was studied |
| قَرَأَ (qaraʾa) | قُرِئَ (quriya) | It was read |
Example sentence:
كُتِبَتِ الرِّسَالَةُ Kutibat al-risālatu. The letter was written. (Passive)
Notice that the agent (the student) has been removed entirely. The letter is now the grammatical subject — called the نائب الفاعل (nāʾib al-fāʿil), meaning "substitute of the agent."
Passive Voice in the Present/Imperfect Tense
The same vowel-shift logic applies to the present/imperfect tense (المضارع).
- Active present pattern: يَفْعَلُ (yafʿalu) → vowels: a under the prefix, a on the middle root letter
- Passive present pattern: يُفْعَلُ (yufʿalu) → vowels: u under the prefix, a on the middle root letter
| Active (يَفْعَلُ) | Passive (يُفْعَلُ) | Meaning (Passive) |
|---|---|---|
| يَكْتُبُ (yaktubu) | يُكْتَبُ (yuktabu) | It is being written |
| يَفْتَحُ (yaftaḥu) | يُفْتَحُ (yuftaḥu) | It is being opened |
| يَدْرُسُ (yadrusu) | يُدْرَسُ (yudracu) | It is being studied |
| يَقْرَأُ (yaqraʾu) | يُقْرَأُ (yuqraʾu) | It is being read |
The key rule for the present passive: the prefix vowel changes from a to u, and the second root consonant takes a fatḥa (a-vowel) rather than the active form's vowel.
Example sentence:
يُدْرَسُ الدَّرْسُ الآنَ Yudracu al-darsu al-ān. The lesson is being studied now. (Passive)
The Nāʾib al-Fāʿil: Substitute Agent
When a verb becomes passive, the original object is promoted to the position of subject and takes the nominative case (مرفوع — marfūʿ) — ending in -u (with a ḍamma vowel).
This promoted subject is called نائب الفاعل (nāʾib al-fāʿil).
Active:
فَتَحَ المُعَلِّمُ البَابَ Fataḥa al-muʿallimu al-bāba. The teacher opened the door.
- Subject: المُعَلِّمُ (the teacher) — nominative
- Object: البَابَ (the door) — accusative
Passive:
فُتِحَ البَابُ Futiḥa al-bābu. The door was opened.
- Nāʾib al-fāʿil: البَابُ (the door) — now nominative
This case system is a core part of Arabic sentence structure and worth studying in depth.
Passive Voice with Derived Verb Forms
Arabic has ten main verb forms (أوزان — awzān), and the passive applies to most of them. The same rule applies: change the prefix vowel to ḍamma (u) and adjust internal vowels accordingly.
Here are a few examples from common derived forms:
Form II (فَعَّلَ / يُفَعِّلُ)
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| عَلَّمَ (ʿallama) — he taught | عُلِّمَ (ʿullima) — he was taught |
| يُعَلِّمُ (yuʿallimu) — he teaches | يُعَلَّمُ (yuʿallamu) — it is taught |
Form IV (أَفْعَلَ / يُفْعِلُ)
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| أَرْسَلَ (arsala) — he sent | أُرْسِلَ (ursila) — he/it was sent |
| يُرْسِلُ (yursilu) — he sends | يُرْسَلُ (yursalu) — it is sent |
Understanding these forms is much easier once you have a solid grasp of the Arabic root system, which governs how all derived forms are built.
When Is the Passive Used in Arabic?
The Arabic passive voice is used in several contexts:
- The agent is unknown: The door was opened (we don't know by whom).
- The agent is unimportant: The food was served. (Who served it doesn't matter.)
- Formal and written Arabic: The passive is much more common in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and Classical Arabic than in everyday spoken dialects.
- Religious and literary texts: The Quran frequently uses passive constructions for rhetorical and stylistic effect.
- News and formal writing: Headlines and reports often use passives: تَمَّ التَّوْقِيعُ عَلَى الاتِّفَاقِيَّةِ (The agreement was signed).
If you're curious about how formal MSA compares to dialects, see our guide on Arabic Dialects Explained.
Recognizing the Passive When Reading
One challenge for learners is that Arabic text is often written without short vowels (diacritics/tashkeel). This means the passive and active forms of a verb can look identical in unvoweled text.
For example:
- كتب could be kataba (he wrote — active) or kutiba (it was written — passive)
Context is your best tool here. Ask yourself:
- Is there a clear subject performing the action?
- Is the verb followed by a nominative noun that seems to be receiving the action?
- Does the sentence feel like it's describing something done to someone or something?
This is why learning to read with vowels first is so important. Our guide on How to Write Arabic covers diacritics in detail.
Quick Reference: Active vs. Passive Patterns
Here is a quick-reference summary of the key vowel changes:
| Tense | Active Pattern | Passive Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Past (Form I) | فَعَلَ (a-a-a) | فُعِلَ (u-i-a) |
| Present (Form I) | يَفْعَلُ (ya- + a) | يُفْعَلُ (yu- + a) |
| Past (Form II) | فَعَّلَ | فُعِّلَ |
| Present (Form II) | يُفَعِّلُ | يُفَعَّلُ |
| Past (Form IV) | أَفْعَلَ | أُفْعِلَ |
| Present (Form IV) | يُفْعِلُ | يُفْعَلُ |
The pattern is consistent: past passive = u on first root letter, i on second; present passive = u on prefix.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Don't use a "be" verb: Arabic passive does NOT use كَانَ (kāna) + participle as its primary passive construction in the same way English uses "to be." The vowel-change method is the standard.
- Don't forget case endings: The nāʾib al-fāʿil must take the nominative (ḍamma). Getting case endings right is essential — revisit Arabic Grammar Basics if needed.
- Don't confuse with participles: The passive participle (مفعول — mafʿūl) is a different form. مَكْتُوب (maktūb) means "written" as an adjective, while كُتِبَ (kutiba) is the passive verb.
Practice Examples
Try converting these active sentences to passive:
Active: شَرِبَ الوَلَدُ المَاءَ — The boy drank the water. Passive: شُرِبَ المَاءُ — The water was drunk.
Active: يَكْتُبُ الكَاتِبُ القِصَّةَ — The writer writes the story. Passive: تُكْتَبُ القِصَّةُ — The story is being written.
Active: فَتَحَ المُدِيرُ المَكْتَبَ — The director opened the office. Passive: فُتِحَ المَكْتَبُ — The office was opened.
Practicing with common vocabulary is a great way to internalize these patterns. Browse our Arabic vocabulary categories to find useful words to build your practice sentences.
Conclusion
The Arabic passive voice is one of those grammar features that seems intimidating at first but becomes elegant once you see the system behind it. Rather than adding new words, Arabic transforms the verb from within — a beautiful reflection of the language's root-based architecture.
To recap the essentials:
- Active voice (المبني للمعلوم): Subject does the action; standard vowel patterns.
- Passive voice (المبني للمجهول): Vowel shifts signal the passive; the object is promoted to nāʾib al-fāʿil in the nominative case.
- Past passive: First root letter gets ḍamma (u), second gets kasra (i).
- Present passive: Prefix changes from a (ya-) to u (yu-).
Keep practicing with real sentences, read Arabic texts with tashkeel whenever possible, and revisit the Arabic root system regularly — it is the key that unlocks passive voice and so much more.
If you're just getting started on your Arabic journey, our Arabic Grammar Basics guide and the Complete Guide to the Arabic Alphabet are the perfect places to begin.