Impersonal constructions describe actions without naming a specific doer, useful for general statements and instructions. This guide covers common impersonal forms and key differences so you can sound naturally neutral.
Impersonal se
Impersonal se uses se plus a third-person verb to express general actions where the agent is unnamed or unimportant. It appears frequently in signs, rules, and everyday descriptions.
Form
The construction is se + third-person singular or plural verb, matching the verb number to the noun that follows (if any). Use singular for an abstract action or when no noun follows.
Examples
When to Use
Use impersonal se for generalizations, public notices, and when you want to erase the actor from the sentence. It works well in both spoken and written Spanish.
Passive Voice with ser
The passive voice with ser highlights an action and its agent can be mentioned or omitted. It's more formal and often appears in news, reports, and official texts.
Form
Form the passive voice with ser + past participle that agrees in gender and number with the subject, and optionally add the agent introduced by por.
Examples
When to Use
Use passive ser when you want to emphasize the result of an action or when the agent is important. Avoid it in casual speech where impersonal constructions sound more natural.
Impersonal ellos and uno
Impersonal references like ellos and uno can stand in for people in general and produce a slightly different nuance. Ellos feels more colloquial while uno sounds more neutral or formal.
Ellos
Using ellos in Spanish to express impersonal actions treats "they" as a vague group and is common in conversation when referring to customary behavior.
Uno
Uno functions like English "one" and takes third-person singular verb forms; it suits examples, advice, and more detached generalizations.
Examples
Impersonal haber
The impersonal construction with haber describes existence, quantities, and events in a neutral way. The verb agrees in number with what appears after it.
Form
Use hay for singular or plural things in the present, había or hubo for past contexts, and adjust to habrán etc. for future or conditional; the participle is not used because haber here is impersonal.
Examples
When to Use
Use impersonal haber for stating the presence or absence of things, announcing events, and giving information that doesn't focus on an agent.
Impersonal estar para and hacer
Expressions like estar para and hacer can function impersonally to signal time, readiness, or duration in general terms. They often appear in descriptions and planning contexts.
Estar para
Estar para + infinitive indicates that something is about to happen or ready to happen soon. It can be used impersonally when no specific agent is named.
Hacer
Hacer + time expression describes how long an action has lasted and can be framed impersonally when the focus is on the event, not on who did it.
Examples
Summary
Impersonal voice in Spanish lets you talk about actions neutrally by using constructions like impersonal se, passive ser, impersonal haber, and general references with ellos or uno. Choose the form that fits the tone—whether formal, neutral, or colloquial—and practice with real examples to internalize the patterns.
Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025