Diferent formulation of past passive in german
Hi, I have found this sentence:

Sind sie schon einmal operiert worden? I translate it like: Have you ever been operated?

But this question I would have translated like this: Wurden Sie schon einmal operiert?

Is my translation correct, if not, why? If yes, is there any difference between these sentences?

Thank you very much!

Question

Diferent formulation of past passive in german
Hi, I have found this sentence:

Sind sie schon einmal operiert worden? I translate it like: Have you ever been operated?

But this question I would have translated like this: Wurden Sie schon einmal operiert?

Is my translation correct, if not, why? If yes, is there any difference between these sentences?

Thank you very much!

Answer

One sentence is Imperfekt, one sentence is Perfekt. In many cases (but not all), both tenses are interchangeable in German. So in this case, there's no difference in meaning.

(Perfekt/Imperfekt usage is a FAQ, use Google to find past answers).