--- title: "The passive in the perfect: is gebouwd" level: B2 chapter: "Verbs in time" canonical: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/passive-perfect updated: 2026-10-09 author: Dutch Fluency license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) --- # The passive in the perfect: is gebouwd In the Dutch passive (the form where the subject undergoes the action), the perfect tense (the tense of _ik heb gewerkt_) is a form of _zijn_ plus the past participle, such as _gebouwd_ or _bezorgd_: _Het huis is in 1920 gebouwd._ The _worden_ you know from [the passive with _worden_](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/passive) drops out, so standard Dutch adds no _geworden_. For the past perfect (had been), swap in _was_: _Het huis was al gebouwd._ ## The pattern > In the perfect, the passive is a present form of _zijn_ plus the past participle, without _geworden_. In the past perfect, you use _was_ or _waren_. - Present: _Het huis wordt gebouwd._ (is being built) - Simple past: _Het huis werd gebouwd._ (was built) - Perfect: _Het huis is gebouwd._ (has been built, or was built) - Past perfect: _Het huis was gebouwd._ (had been built) - Plural: _De huizen zijn gebouwd_, _De huizen waren gebouwd_. - If you say who did it, add _door_: _door een bekende architect_. - In a subordinate clause both orders are fine: _dat het pakket is bezorgd_ or _dat het pakket bezorgd is_. ## Examples | Het stadhuis **is** in 1920 **gebouwd**. | The town hall was built in 1920. | | Mijn fiets **is** vannacht **gestolen**. | My bike was stolen last night. | | Uw aanvraag **is** door de gemeente **goedgekeurd**. | Your application has been approved by the municipality. | | Ik **ben** vanochtend door de huisarts **teruggebeld**. | I was called back by the GP this morning. | | Weet jij of het pakket al **is bezorgd**? | Do you know if the parcel has been delivered yet? | | Toen Daan thuiskwam, **was** de taart al **aangesneden**. | When Daan got home, the cake had already been cut. | | De vergadering **was** al **afgelast**, maar niemand had het ons verteld. | The meeting had already been cancelled, but nobody had told us. | | De brug **is** vorige week door de gemeente **afgesloten**. | The bridge was closed by the municipality last week. | | De brug **is afgesloten**, dus je moet omrijden. | The bridge is closed, so you have to take a detour. | ## Why it works this way _Worden_ means become: it describes a change in progress. _Het huis wordt gebouwd_ is the building site, cranes and all. The perfect of _worden_ takes _zijn_ (_Het is koud geworden_), so on paper you might expect _is gebouwd geworden_. Standard Dutch keeps _zijn_ and leaves _geworden_ out. German keeps it (_ist gebaut worden_), which is why German speakers often add it. In informal speech in Belgium and the south of the Netherlands you may hear _is gebouwd geworden_, but it is not standard Dutch. Remember: _worden_ is the scaffolding. While the work is going on, you see it (_wordt gebouwd_). When the job is done, the scaffolding comes down and _is gebouwd_ is what is left. ### One form, two meanings Because _is gebouwd_ describes a finished result, it does two jobs. An action reading reports that something happened: _Het pakket is gisteren bezorgd._ A state reading describes a condition that holds now: _De brug is afgesloten_, so you cannot cross. Context tells you which one is meant. A time phrase or a doer with _door_ usually points to an action, while a consequence in the present (_dus je moet omrijden_) points to a state. The state use works much like an adjective, see [past participles as adjectives](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/participle-as-adjective). ### The English trap English was built usually becomes _is gebouwd_ or _werd gebouwd_. Dutch _was gebouwd_ is the [past perfect](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/past-perfect): had been built, or the state at a moment in the past. And routines like the rubbish is collected on Tuesdays need _worden_: _Het afval wordt op dinsdag opgehaald._ With _is_ (_Het afval is op dinsdag opgehaald_), you report that it was collected on one particular Tuesday. ## Watch out - Not: _Het station is in 1920 gebouwd geworden._ Say: _Het station is in 1920 gebouwd._ (standard Dutch leaves out _geworden_) - Not: _Mijn fiets heeft geweest gestolen._ Say: _Mijn fiets is gestolen._ (English has been is not _heeft geweest_; Dutch uses _is_ plus the participle) - Not: _De vergadering had al afgelast geweest._ Say: _De vergadering was al afgelast._ (English had been becomes _was_ plus the participle) - Not: _Mijn aanvraag is van de gemeente goedgekeurd._ Say: _Mijn aanvraag is door de gemeente goedgekeurd._ (the doer comes with _door_, not _van_) ## Quick check 1. Put this sentence in the perfect: _Het zwembad werd vorig jaar geopend._ 2. Fix the sentence: _Onze buren zijn gisteren door de politie gewaarschuwd geworden._ 3. Fill in a form of _zijn_: _Toen Priya bij de balie kwam, ... haar afspraak al geannuleerd._ 4. Does _is gesloten_ describe a state or a past action here? _Sorry, deze kassa is gesloten. U kunt hiernaast afrekenen._ ## Answers 1. _Het zwembad is vorig jaar geopend._ (_zijn_ plus participle, no _geworden_) 2. _Onze buren zijn gisteren door de politie gewaarschuwd._ (standard Dutch leaves out _geworden_) 3. _was_ (the cancelling happened before she arrived, so past perfect) 4. A state: the till is closed right now, which is why you are sent to the next one; nothing is said about when it was closed. ## Use it today Look at today's emails, post or app notifications and write three sentences about what has already been done, using _is_ or _zijn_ plus a participle, such as _Mijn pakket is bezorgd_ or _De huur is betaald_. Then add one sentence with _was_ about something that had already happened before you got home. ## Questions learners ask **Do you say "is gebouwd" or "is gebouwd geworden" in Dutch?** In standard Dutch you say "is gebouwd": the perfect passive is a form of zijn plus the past participle, and geworden is left out. You may hear "is gebouwd geworden" in informal speech in Belgium and the south of the Netherlands, but it is not standard Dutch. **How do you say "had been built" in Dutch?** Use was or waren plus the past participle: "Het huis was al gebouwd" or "De huizen waren al gebouwd". Do not translate "had been" as "had geweest". **Does "is gesloten" mean "is closed" or "was closed"?** It can mean both. With a time phrase or a doer, as in "De winkel is gisteren door de eigenaar gesloten", it reports a past action; without them, as in "Sorry, de winkel is gesloten", it usually describes the current state. From the Dutch Fluency Grammar: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar. 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