Passive Voice: Only for Transitive

In a normal sentence, we have a subject and an object. 'The boy ate the apple.' The boy is the star. But what if we want the apple to be the star? We move the apple to the front. We kick the boy out of the sentence. Now, the apple is the 'Deputy Subject'. In Arabic, this is called Na'ib Fa'il. This new boss takes the same ending as a subject. That means it gets a damma (the 'u' sound) at the end. The verb also changes its clothes. It shifts its vowels to show that the action is happening to the subject. It is a total transformation! Think of it like a movie where the supporting actor suddenly becomes the lead. It changes the whole feeling of the scene. You are shifting the focus from 'Who' to 'What happened'. It is elegant, concise, and very common in news and formal writing.

1. 1Creating the passive voice is all about the vowels. We follow a strict recipe. Here is how you cook it up for the Past Tense (Madi):
2. 2Take your basic three-letter verb, like kataba (he wrote).
3. 3Change the first vowel to a damma (u). Now you have ku-.
4. 4Change the second-to-last vowel to a kasra (i). Now you have ku-ti-.
5. 5Keep the last vowel as it is. You get kutiba (it was written).
6. 6Now, let's look at the Present Tense (Mudari'):
7. 7Take the present verb, like yaktubu (he writes).
8. 8Keep the first letter ya but give it a damma (u). You get yu-.
9. 9Change the second-to-last vowel to a fatha (a). You get yu-kta-.
10. 10Keep the last vowel as a damma. You get yuktabu (it is being written).
11. 11It is like a grammar traffic light. Red light for the old vowels, green light for the new ones. Just remember: Past is 'u-i', Present is 'u-a'.

When should you pull out this grammar trick? Here are some real-world scenarios. First, when you honestly don't know who did it. 'The keys were lost.' You aren't blaming anyone! Second, in a job interview or professional report. 'The project was completed.' It sounds very official and serious. Third, when the 'who' is obvious. 'The thief was arrested.' We know the police did it, so we don't need to say it. Fourth, when you are being tactful. If your friend breaks a plate, you might say 'The plate was broken' instead of 'You broke the plate.' It saves the friendship! Arabic speakers love using the passive in formal contexts. It adds a layer of sophistication to your speech. It’s like wearing a suit instead of a t-shirt. You’ll see it all over news headlines and academic books.

Here is the most important part of our rule today. You cannot use the passive with intransitive verbs. These are verbs that don't need an object. Think of verbs like dhahaba (he went) or jalasa (he sat). You can't say 'The chair was sat' in a simple way in Arabic. There is no object to become the new subject. It is a dead end. If the verb doesn't have a 'victim' or a 'target', it stays active. Also, avoid the passive if you want to be direct and energetic. Passive voice can sometimes feel a bit lazy or vague. If you are ordering food, don't say 'The coffee is wanted by me.' That’s just weird! Say 'I want coffee.' Use the passive when you want to hide the actor, not when you are trying to get things done quickly.

Everyone makes mistakes, and that is okay! One big mistake is forgetting the ending of the new subject. The Na'ib Fa'il must end with a damma. People often leave it with a fatha because it used to be an object. Don't let it be a ghost of its former self! Another mistake is getting the vowels backwards. Remember: Past is 'u' then 'i'. Present is 'u' then 'a'. If you mix them up, you might say 'it is being written' when you mean 'it was written.' Finally, don't try to force an intransitive verb into the passive. If there is no object, just stop. Trying to make 'he slept' passive is like trying to put a square peg in a round hole. It just won't fit. Even native speakers might stumble if they are speaking too fast, so take your time with those vowels.

Don't confuse the passive with the reflexive. Some verbs in Arabic look a bit like passive verbs but mean 'to do something to oneself.' The passive is always about an outside force. Also, compare it to the active voice. In active, the focus is the 'doer'. In passive, the focus is the 'result'. Think of it like this: Active is a video of the person painting. Passive is a photo of the finished painting. The passive is much more common in written Arabic than in daily street slang. In many dialects, people use different prefixes like it- to show the passive. But in Modern Standard Arabic, which you are learning, the vowel shift is the king. Mastering this makes you sound educated and precise.