Verbs without a passive voice

Not all verbs can form the passive voice. The most important verb categories that have no passive types are displayed below.

verb categories	Examples

modal verbs	müssen, können

reflexive verbs	sich irren, sich interessieren

transitive verbs
the accusative object indicates size, quantity, etc.	kosten, enthalten o.ä.
the impersonal "es gibt"	es gibt
verbs kennen, wissen	kennen, wissen

intransitive verbs
verbs whose subject is not a person	Ihre Art gefällt uns.
verbs with a subject that does not really denote action	Die Kinder schlafen.
verbs that form the present perfect with sein	Sie kommen spät zurück.