Voice in Marathi grammar — called प्रयोग — refers to the relationship between the verb, the subject, and the object in a sentence. Marathi recognises three distinct voices: कर्तरी प्रयोग (active voice), कर्मणी प्रयोग (passive/ergative voice), and भावे प्रयोग (impersonal or bhave construction). Understanding these three voices is essential for reading classical Marathi literature, for competitive exams, and for achieving a natural, fluent style in advanced writing.
The concept of प्रयोग is closely linked to the case system and to verb agreement — two topics you should already be comfortable with before studying this lesson. If not, first review Verbs (क्रियापद) and Tenses (काळ), then come back here. After completing this lesson, review Sentence Formation (वाक्यरचना) to see how all three voices fit into the broader sentence structure of Marathi. Practise using the Sentence Checker and the Grammar Quiz Generator.
Unlike English, where active and passive are primarily about how the agent and patient are expressed, Marathi voice also controls verb agreement in a fundamental way. Getting the voice wrong leads to incorrect verb agreement — one of the most noticeable and far-reaching errors in learner Marathi. Every past-tense transitive sentence requires you to know which voice you are using before you can correctly conjugate the verb.
What Is प्रयोग?
The word प्रयोग means "application" or "use" in Sanskrit, and as a grammatical term it refers to the way the verb is "applied" with respect to the subject and object. The three voices differ fundamentally in who or what the verb agrees with:
- कर्तरी प्रयोग — The verb agrees with the कर्ता (subject/agent). This is the standard active voice for intransitive verbs in any tense, and for transitive verbs in the present and future tenses.
- कर्मणी प्रयोग — The verb agrees with the कर्म (object/patient). This covers the ergative past-tense construction for transitive verbs and the formal morphological passive.
- भावे प्रयोग — The verb agrees with neither subject nor object; it is fixed in the third-person singular neuter form. This is used with certain impersonal or modal constructions where the agent or patient is unspecified.
कर्तरी प्रयोग — Active Voice
In the active voice, the grammatical subject (कर्ता) is in the nominative case and the verb agrees with it in person, number, and gender. The subject is the doer of the action, and this doer is the primary grammatical controller of the verb.
When Is कर्तरी Used?
- With intransitive verbs in any tense: मुलगा धावतो (The boy runs), ती गेली (She went)
- With transitive verbs in the present and future tenses: राम आंबा खातो (Ram eats a mango), मी पत्र लिहीन (I will write a letter)
- In habitual and continuous present constructions: ती रोज गाणे म्हणते (She sings a song every day)
मी पुस्तक वाचतो.
I read the book. — Active (कर्तरी): subject मी (I) is nominative. Verb वाचतो is first-person masculine singular, agreeing with the masculine speaker.
मुले आनंदाने खेळतात.
The children play happily. — Intransitive active: verb खेळतात is third-person plural, agreeing with the plural neuter subject मुले.
ती उद्या मुंबईला जाईल.
She will go to Mumbai tomorrow. — Intransitive future: verb जाईल is third-person feminine singular, agreeing with the feminine subject ती.
कर्मणी प्रयोग — Passive Voice
In the passive voice, the patient (कर्म, the thing acted upon) becomes the grammatical pivot, and the verb agrees with it. The agent, if mentioned at all, is placed in the instrumental case (कडून for the formal passive, or ने/नी for the ergative). This construction is used both in the everyday ergative past-tense construction and in the classical literary passive.
The Everyday Ergative (Past Transitive — the Most Common Form)
In the simple past tense with transitive verbs, Marathi automatically uses an ergative construction. The subject (agent) takes the suffix ने/नी and the verb agrees with the direct object. This is the most common and most important form of कर्मणी प्रयोग in modern Marathi. Every learner must master it.
रामने आंबा खाल्ला.
Ram ate the mango. — Agent रामने is in the instrumental. Verb खाल्ला is masculine singular, agreeing with आंबा (mango, masculine), not with Ram.
मुलीने पत्र लिहिले.
The girl wrote the letter. — Agent मुलीने (instrumental). Verb लिहिले is neuter singular, agreeing with पत्र (letter, neuter).
आम्ही गाणी ऐकली.
We listened to songs. — Agent आम्ही takes no explicit ergative suffix in this construction (first person), but the verb ऐकली is feminine plural, agreeing with गाणी (songs, neuter plural — treated as feminine plural in agreement here).
The Literary or Formal Passive
Marathi also has a morphological passive formed with the past participle combined with the auxiliary verb जाणे (to go). This construction is more formal and literary; it appears in newspaper prose, official notices, and classical texts. The agent, if present, takes the postposition कडून (by, from the side of):
रामाकडून पत्र लिहिले गेले.
A letter was written by Ram. — Formal passive: agent रामाकडून (by Ram). The verb complex लिहिले गेले is neuter singular, agreeing with the neuter subject पत्र.
Tip
In everyday spoken Marathi, the ergative past construction (रामने पत्र लिहिले) is far more common than the morphological passive (रामाकडून पत्र लिहिले गेले). The morphological passive appears in newspapers, formal prose, official government language, and literary works. For competitive exams like MPSC and TET, you need to recognise and produce both forms. Use the Grammar Quiz Generator to practise converting between them.
भावे प्रयोग — Impersonal Construction
The भावे प्रयोग is the most distinctive Marathi voice and has no direct equivalent in English. In this construction, the verb is invariably in the third-person singular neuter form, regardless of the number or gender of any subject or object mentioned. The action itself is foregrounded as a general or impersonal event; the agent and patient recede into the background.
When Is भावे Used?
- When the agent is unspecified or generalised: इथे बसावे (One should sit here / Sitting is appropriate here)
- In impersonal polite commands and notices: आत यावे (Please come in / One should enter)
- With modal auxiliary forms expressing obligation, permission, or ability: इथे धूम्रपान करू नये (One should not smoke here)
- In certain intransitive constructions expressing involuntary states: त्याला हसू आले (He burst out laughing — literally "laughter came to him")
आता निघावे.
One should leave now. — भावे प्रयोग: the verb निघावे is in the neuter singular form regardless of who is being addressed. No explicit subject. The action (leaving) is presented as the appropriate general course of action.
सभेत शांतता राखावी.
Silence should be maintained in the assembly. — The verb राखावी agrees with शांतता (silence, feminine) in some analyses, but the construction is classed as भावे when the agent is entirely unspecified. The sense is impersonal: "it is to be maintained."
Expert insight
The भावे प्रयोग has roots in Sanskrit's impersonal passive construction. In Sanskrit, the impersonal passive was fixed in the neuter singular and expressed a general action without specifying an agent. Marathi has preserved this construction almost unchanged over two millennia, which is remarkable. Recognising it in classical Marathi texts and in modern formal prose — especially government notices and formal invitations — is a skill that distinguishes advanced learners from intermediates. The construction appears very frequently in formal written Marathi, though rarely in everyday speech.
Comparison Table: The Three Voices
| Feature | कर्तरी प्रयोग | कर्मणी प्रयोग | भावे प्रयोग |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verb agrees with | कर्ता (Subject) | कर्म (Object) | Neither — fixed neuter |
| Subject case | Nominative | Instrumental (ने/नी) or कडून | Usually absent or dative |
| Tenses / contexts | Present, Future; any intransitive | Past transitive; Formal passive | Modal, Impersonal, Obligatory |
| English equivalent | Active voice | Passive voice | Impersonal / "one should" |
| Worked example | ती लिहिते. | तिने लिहिले. | लिहावे. |
Converting Between Active and Passive: Step by Step
To convert a कर्तरी present-tense sentence to a कर्मणी past-tense ergative sentence, follow these four steps:
- Move the subject to the instrumental case: add ने (masculine singular) or नी (feminine singular / all plurals) to the oblique stem.
- Change the tense to past (use the past participle stem).
- Make the verb agree with the direct object's gender and number instead of the subject's.
- Verify the whole sentence with the Sentence Checker.
Conversion Examples
Active (present): राम आंबा खातो. → Ergative (past): रामने आंबा खाल्ला.
Ram eats a mango (present active) → Ram ate the mango (past ergative). खाल्ला now agrees with the masculine object आंबा.
Active: मुलगी पत्र लिहिते. → Ergative past: मुलीने पत्र लिहिले.
The girl writes a letter → The girl wrote a letter. लिहिले agrees with the neuter पत्र.
Active: मुले गाणी म्हणतात. → Formal passive: मुलांकडून गाणी म्हटली जातात.
The children sing songs → Songs are sung by the children. The verb म्हटली जातात is in the present passive, agreeing with the plural subject गाणी.
Active: तू इथे बस. → Bhave: इथे बसावे.
You sit here (direct command) → One should sit here (impersonal). The agent is generalised; the verb is in the impersonal भावे form, unchanging regardless of who is addressed.
Common mistake
When converting from active to कर्मणी, learners consistently forget to change verb agreement. They write रामने आंबा खाल्लो (first-person form, completely incorrect) instead of रामने आंबा खाल्ला (masculine singular, agreeing with आंबा). The moment you add ने to the subject, the verb must agree with the object — always re-check this relationship. Paste every past-transitive sentence you write into the Sentence Checker until the pattern becomes automatic.
Voice in Different Tenses: A Comprehensive Summary
| Tense / Construction | Verb Type | Voice Used | Agreement Target | Agent Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present simple | Transitive | कर्तरी | Subject | Nominative |
| Present simple | Intransitive | कर्तरी | Subject | Nominative |
| Future | Transitive / Intransitive | कर्तरी | Subject | Nominative |
| Past simple | Transitive | कर्मणी (ergative) | Object | Instrumental (ने/नी) |
| Past simple | Intransitive | कर्तरी | Subject | Nominative |
| Formal passive | Transitive | कर्मणी | Object | कडून |
| Modal / Impersonal | Any | भावे | Neither — fixed neuter | Absent or dative |
How to Identify the Voice in an Exam
In a competitive exam question asking you to identify the प्रयोग of a sentence, follow this procedure:
- Look at the subject. Does it have the suffix ने/नी? If yes, the construction is likely कर्मणी.
- Does the verb agree with the subject? If yes and there is no ergative suffix, it is कर्तरी.
- Is the verb fixed in the neuter form with no explicit controlling noun? It is भावे.
- If a noun has कडून, it is the formal कर्मणी passive.
Practise this procedure with the Grammar Quiz Generator and the Exam Mock Quiz tool until the identification becomes automatic.
Practice Questions
Q1. Identify the voice (प्रयोग) and explain verb agreement in: मुलांनी गाणे गायले.
Show answer
This is कर्मणी प्रयोग (ergative past). The agent मुलांनी is in the instrumental case. The verb गायले is neuter singular, agreeing with गाणे (song, neuter singular) — the direct object.
Q2. Convert to कर्मणी प्रयोग (past tense): ती भाजी आणते.
Show answer
तिने भाजी आणली. — ती becomes तिने (feminine instrumental). The verb आणली is feminine singular, agreeing with भाजी (vegetables, feminine).
Q3. What voice is इथे धूम्रपान करू नये and why?
Show answer
This is भावे प्रयोग. The verb करू नये is in the neuter impersonal form. There is no explicit subject. The sentence means "One should not smoke here" — the prohibition is impersonal, applying to anyone in that space.
Q4. Write the formal passive (कर्मणी with कडून) of: शिक्षकाने प्रश्न विचारला.
Show answer
शिक्षकाकडून प्रश्न विचारला गेला. — The agent शिक्षकाने becomes शिक्षकाकडून. The verb विचारला गेला is masculine singular, agreeing with प्रश्न (question, masculine).
Tips for Mastering प्रयोग
- Before writing any past-tense transitive sentence, ask yourself: "Is this ergative? If so, what is the object's gender and number?" Then form the verb accordingly.
- The Verb Conjugation tool gives you all three voice forms for any verb you enter — use it as a reference until the patterns become automatic.
- Read newspaper editorials and formal notices in Marathi specifically to spot भावे प्रयोग constructions — they appear very frequently in those registers.
- Practise converting between voices using the Grammar Quiz Generator, which includes dedicated प्रयोग conversion exercises.
- Verify all your written sentences with the Sentence Checker, paying attention to the agreement error messages it provides for ergative constructions.
Summary
Marathi has three voices (प्रयोग): कर्तरी (active — verb agrees with subject, used in present/future and all intransitive), कर्मणी (passive/ergative — verb agrees with object, used in past transitive and formal passive with कडून), and भावे (impersonal — verb fixed in neuter, used for unspecified agents and modal constructions). Converting between voices requires changing the case of the agent and re-targeting verb agreement. Mastery of प्रयोग is essential for advanced Marathi writing, literary reading, and competitive exams. Use the Sentence Checker and the Grammar Quiz Generator for practice, and revisit Sentence Formation (वाक्यरचना) and Tenses (काळ) to reinforce the full picture of Marathi grammar.
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