GrammarC1· Karriere & Führung
Das bekommen-Passiv (Rezipientenpassiv)
The bekommen passive (recipient passive)
Kartoffel · your teacher
Hi! Let's look at this one together — step by step, no rush.
From what you know
Ihm wird das Paket zugeschickt.becomesEr bekommt das Paket zugeschickt.6 parts · about 6 min
1What & when
In one line
In one lineWith bekommen and a , the person who receives becomes the :
1
Before
Man hat ihr eine Beförderung angeboten.
Watch the sentence change …
The ihr becomes the sie. In the , the sentence ends with the and bekommen.
„Sie hat eine Beförderung angeboten bekommen.“ — She has been offered a promotion.
Kartoffel
First, what is it?
You know the werden : the thing the action is done to becomes the . Something can also be given, sent, paid or explained to a person. Then German has a second passive that puts that person in the subject slot: It is built with bekommen, kriegen or erhalten and the . Grammars call it the Rezipientenpassiv (recipient passive) or Dativpassiv.
Kartoffel
And when do you need it? More often than you'd think:
Karriere & FührungYou need it whenever the person who receives matters more than the one who gives. That happens a lot at work: a promotion you were offered, costs you get back, responsibility you are handed, news you are told. HR letters write Sie erhalten den Vertrag zugesandt. Colleagues say Ich krieg das Seminar bezahlt. In your annual review you say
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