Passiivsed

Passiivsed refers to the passive voice and related forms in Estonian grammar. The term describes constructions where the action is performed on the subject rather than by the subject, or where the agent performing the action is not stated. Passives are often used to foreground the recipient of the action, to generalize statements, or to avoid naming the agent.

In Estonian, passive forms are built on the verb stem with specific suffixes. The present passive is typically formed with the suffix -akse or -takse, depending on the verb stem. A common example is raamat kirjutatakse, meaning “the book is being written.” The past passive is formed with the suffix -ti, as in raamat kirjutati, meaning “the book was written.” The passive voice can also be expressed by the participle, which yields passive participles such as tehtud (done) or kirjutatud (written). These are used as adjectives or in compound tenses, e.g., kirjutatud tekst (written text) or tehtud töö (completed work).

Agent marking: The agent of a passive clause can be specified with a prepositional phrase in genitive, often using poolt to mean “by.” For example, Töö kirjutati autorite poolt means “The work was written by the authors.” In many contexts, the agent is omitted because the focus is on the action or its recipient.

Usage and style: Passives are common in formal, written Estonian, including news, official reports, and academic writing. In everyday speech, actors and agents are more often stated or replaced by active constructions or impersonal forms. The passive, with its range of present, past, and participial forms, provides a flexible tool for shaping emphasis and information structure.