Lingvero

Spanish Passive Voice Practice

Spanish has two passives — fue escrita and se venden pisos — plus estar for resulting states. Drill all three systems with 30 sentences and instant explanations.

30 exercises~9 min to completeB1 – B2 level
IRead first

The rule, in plain English.

Spanish has more than one way to say that something was done to something, and choosing the right one is what makes you sound natural. The "true" passive uses ser + past participle: La novela fue escrita por Cervantes. Here the participle behaves like an adjective, so it agrees in gender and number with the subject — fue escrita, fueron construidos — and the agent is introduced with por. But here's the catch: spoken Spanish avoids this structure almost entirely.

In everyday speech Spaniards prefer the pasiva refleja — Se venden pisos, Se habla español — where the verb agrees with the noun (se vende el piso, se venden los pisos). When the object is a person marked with a, you get the impersonal se and the verb stays singular: Se ayudó a los heridos. Finally, don't confuse the action with its result: La puerta fue cerrada describes the event, while La puerta está cerrada describes the state afterwards. Watch out for irregular participles like escrito, hecho, roto, abierto, puesto, visto and dicho.

30 exercises below. Read the explanation after each answer — that's where the rule sinks in.

IIQuick reference
Ser + past participle (the true passive)the participle agrees; the agent takes por
01
ser + participle for the action
La novela fue escrita en 1605.
02
the participle agrees in gender and number
Los puentes fueron construidos por los romanos.
03
por introduces the agent
El cuadro fue pintado por Goya.
04
feminine plural → -as
Las cartas fueron enviadas ayer.
05
works in any tense
Los resultados serán publicados mañana.
Irregular past participles you must memorizeescrito, hecho, roto, abierto, puesto, visto, dicho
01
escribir → escrito
El informe fue escrito a mano.
02
hacer → hecho
El trabajo ya está hecho.
03
romper → roto
La ventana fue rota por el viento.
04
abrir → abierto
Las puertas fueron abiertas al público.
05
poner → puesto
La mesa ya está puesta.
06
ver → visto / decir → dicho
El ladrón fue visto; nada más fue dicho.
The se-passive (pasiva refleja) — what Spaniards actually say
  • se + singular verb + singular nounSe vende el piso de la esquina.
  • se + plural verb + plural nounSe venden pisos en este barrio.
  • classic signs and factsSe habla español. Se alquilan habitaciones.
  • works in the past tooSe construyeron muchas casas en 2005.
  • with a + person, the verb stays singularSe ayudó a los heridos.
Ser vs estar + participle: action vs state
  • ser + participle = the action happeningLa puerta fue cerrada a las diez.
  • estar + participle = the resulting stateLa puerta está cerrada; nadie puede entrar.
  • states after a completed actionLos deberes ya están hechos.
  • spoken Spanish prefers se or the active voiceSe reparó el coche (not: el coche fue reparado).
IIIPractice exercises

Practice.

Answer first, then read the explanation. Don't skip it — that's the whole point.

Exercise 01 of 30Tag: participle agreement feminine
Fill in the blank

La novela fue _____ por Gabriel García Márquez.

The novel was written by Gabriel García Márquez.

Exercise 02 of 30Tag: participle agreement plural
Fill in the blank

Los puentes fueron _____ por los romanos.

The bridges were built by the Romans.

Exercise 03 of 30Tag: por + agent
Fill in the blank

La carta fue escrita _____ mi abuela.

The letter was written by my grandmother.

Exercise 04 of 30Tag: ser agrees with subject
Fill in the blank

El cuadro _____ pintado por Velázquez en 1656.

The painting was painted by Velázquez in 1656.

Exercise 05 of 30Tag: fueron with plural subject
Fill in the blank

Las casas _____ destruidas por el terremoto.

The houses were destroyed by the earthquake.

Exercise 06 of 30Tag: se-passive plural
Fill in the blank

Se _____ pisos en este barrio.

Apartments are for sale in this neighbourhood.

Exercise 07 of 30Tag: se habla
Fill in the blank

Se _____ español en más de veinte países.

Spanish is spoken in more than twenty countries.

Exercise 08 of 30Tag: se-passive singular
Fill in the blank

Se _____ el piso de la esquina, ¿lo has visto?

The corner apartment is for sale — have you seen it?

Exercise 09 of 30Tag: estar for resulting state
Fill in the blank

La puerta _____ cerrada; nadie puede entrar ahora.

The door is closed; nobody can come in now.

Exercise 10 of 30Tag: ser for the action
Fill in the blank

La puerta _____ cerrada por el portero a las diez en punto.

The door was closed by the doorman at ten o'clock sharp.

Exercise 11 of 30Tag: irregular participle hecho
Fill in the blank

No te preocupes, el trabajo ya está _____.

Don't worry, the work is already done.

Exercise 12 of 30Tag: irregular participle roto
Fill in the blank

La ventana fue _____ por el viento durante la tormenta.

The window was broken by the wind during the storm.

Exercise 13 of 30Tag: impersonal se with people
Fill in the blank

Se _____ a los heridos después del accidente.

The injured were helped after the accident.

Exercise 14 of 30Tag: impersonal se with people
Fill in the blank

Se _____ a los sospechosos esta mañana en el aeropuerto.

The suspects were arrested this morning at the airport.

Exercise 15 of 30Tag: irregular participle abierto
Fill in the blank

Las puertas del museo fueron _____ al público en 1980.

The museum's doors were opened to the public in 1980.

Exercise 16 of 30Tag: participle agreement masculine
Fill in the blank

El acuerdo fue _____ por ambos presidentes.

The agreement was signed by both presidents.

Exercise 17 of 30Tag: se-passive in the past
Fill in the blank

Se _____ muchas casas en esta zona el año pasado.

Many houses were built in this area last year.

Exercise 18 of 30Tag: future passive
Fill in the blank

Los resultados serán _____ mañana en la página web.

The results will be published tomorrow on the website.

Exercise 19 of 30Tag: What natives say
Choose the correct sentence

In everyday spoken Spanish, which is the most natural way to say "Apartments are sold here"?

Apartments are sold here.

Exercise 20 of 30Tag: Spotting errors
Choose the correct sentence

Which sentence has a passive-voice error?

Spot the agreement mistake.

Exercise 21 of 30Tag: impersonal se
Fill in the blank

En España se _____ muy tarde, sobre las diez de la noche.

In Spain people have dinner very late, around ten at night.

Exercise 22 of 30Tag: ser vs estar + participle
Choose the correct sentence

Which sentence describes a resulting state, not an action?

The shop has been open since nine.

Exercise 23 of 30Tag: perfect passive
Fill in the blank

Los errores ya han sido _____ por el equipo.

The mistakes have already been corrected by the team.

Exercise 24 of 30Tag: se-passive perfect
Fill in the blank

Todavía no se _____ dicho nada oficial sobre el caso.

Nothing official has been said about the case yet.

Exercise 25 of 30Tag: irregular participle puesto
Fill in the blank

La mesa ya está _____ ; podemos comer.

The table is already set; we can eat.

Exercise 26 of 30Tag: irregular participle visto
Fill in the blank

El ladrón fue _____ por dos testigos cerca de la estación.

The thief was seen by two witnesses near the station.

Exercise 27 of 30Tag: se-passive past plural
Fill in the blank

Se _____ las luces del estadio a las once de la noche.

The stadium lights were turned off at eleven at night.

Exercise 28 of 30Tag: Choose the form
Choose the correct sentence

Choose the correct form: "Se ___ los premios mañana por la tarde."

The prizes will be handed out tomorrow afternoon.

Exercise 29 of 30Tag: irregular participle dicho
Fill in the blank

Eso ya fue _____ en la reunión de ayer.

That was already said in yesterday's meeting.

Exercise 30 of 30Tag: Spotting errors
Choose the correct sentence

Which sentence has a se-passive or impersonal-se error?

Spot the impersonal-se mistake.

Every answer is explained

Not just a green check. A short paragraph telling you why.

No gamification

No streaks, no points, no leaderboards. Just questions.

No signup

Runs in your browser. Bookmark the topics you want to come back to.

More to practice

Other topics.

Questions answered

Common questions.

What is the difference between "fue cerrada" and "está cerrada"?+

Fue cerrada (ser + participle) narrates the action: the door was closed at some moment, possibly by someone. Está cerrada (estar + participle) describes the resulting state: the door is closed now. If you can add por + agent or a time of the event, use ser; if you're describing how things are, use estar.

What is the pasiva refleja (se-passive)?+

It's the passive built with se + verb: Se venden pisos, Se habla español. The verb agrees with the noun — se vende el piso (singular) but se venden los pisos (plural). It's by far the most common passive in Spanish and the one you see on signs everywhere.

Why is it "Se ayudó a los heridos" and not "Se ayudaron"?+

Because the people are marked with the personal a, they are a grammatical object, not the subject. That makes the construction impersonal, so the verb stays singular no matter how many people are involved: Se ayudó a los heridos, Se detuvo a los sospechosos.

Do Spanish speakers actually use the ser-passive?+

Rarely in speech. You'll meet fue escrita or fueron construidos in news reports, history books and formal writing, but in conversation Spaniards prefer the se-passive (Se reparó el coche) or simply the active voice (El mecánico reparó el coche). Learn to recognise the ser-passive, but default to se when you speak.

Which past participles are irregular?+

The essential set is escrito (escribir), hecho (hacer), roto (romper), abierto (abrir), puesto (poner), visto (ver) and dicho (decir). Also useful: vuelto, muerto, cubierto, descubierto. Forms like hacido, rompido or decido don't exist — that's the trap.

Are these exercises free?+

Yes. All 30 exercises run right in your browser, need no signup, and give you a clear explanation after every answer.