Breakdown of Der Tatort ist gesperrt worden.
sein
to be
werden
to be (passive auxiliary + past participle)
der Tatort
the crime scene
sperren
to close off
Questions & Answers about Der Tatort ist gesperrt worden.
Why do we use ist here instead of hat for the present perfect tense?
In German, the passive voice in the present perfect (Perfekt) tense is always formed using the helping verb sein (here as ist), not haben. So while English says 'has been', German essentially says 'is been'. You then add the past participle of your main verb (gesperrt) and end with worden.
Why is the final word worden and not geworden?
When forming the passive voice in the perfect tense, German drops the ge- prefix from the final helping verb. geworden is the past participle of werden when it means 'to become' as a standalone main verb. But when werden is just a helping verb building the passive voice, it shortens to worden.
Could I also say Der Tatort wurde gesperrt?
Yes, you absolutely can! That is the simple past (Präteritum) passive. Both versions are correct. ist gesperrt worden (present perfect passive) is very common in everyday spoken German, while wurde gesperrt is slightly shorter and often preferred in written news reports or formal storytelling.
Does the verb sperren specifically mean to 'cordon off'?
sperren is a versatile verb broadly meaning to block, close, or lock. You can use it when a road is closed for construction, or even when a bank account or credit card is locked. In police contexts like a crime scene, 'cordoned off' is just the most natural English translation.