Learn Minna no Nihongo Grammar – Lesson 37
Translated from the Vietnamese original. View the original.
Learn Minna no Nihongo Grammar – Lesson 37
Let’s study N5-level Japanese grammar, lesson by lesson, following the Minna no Nihongo textbook.
The passive form (受身)
I. How to form it
Group I: Change [ i ] to [ are ].
| ~ます | 受身(うけみ) |
| ききます | きかれます |
| よみます | よまれます |
| はこびます | はこばれます |
| とります | とられます |
| つかいます | つかわれます |
| こわします | こわされます |
Group II: Add られ.
| たべます | たべられます |
| ほめます | ほめられます |
| みます | みられます |
Group III:
| きます | こられます |
| します | されます |
II. Passive sentence patterns
1. Pattern 1: N1(person)は N2(person)に+ passive
* Meaning: to be ~ (by someone)
* Usage: When noun 2 does something to noun 1, noun 1 is on the receiving end of that action.
a) Positive sense: to be (praised, etc.)
Examples:
Active: 課長は 私を ほめました。 The section chief praised me.
Passive: 私は 課長に ほめられました。I was praised by the section chief.
b) Negative sense: to be (told off, etc.)
Examples:
Active: 課長は 私を しかりました。 The section chief told me off.
Passive: 私は 課長に しかられました。I was told off by the section chief.
Note: In the active sentence, noun 1 is the receiver of the action, marked by the particle を, but in the passive sentence を is replaced by は marking the subject, while noun 2, the doer, is marked by に.
2. Pattern 2: N1(person)は N2(person) に N3(thing)を+ passive
Meaning:: to have something done to you
Usage:: when noun 2 does something to noun 3, which belongs to noun 1, and noun 1 feels bothered or inconvenienced by it.
Examples:
Active: どろぼうは (わたしの) お金を 取りました。 A thief took my money.
Passive: 私は どろぼうに お金を 取られました.。 I had my money taken by a thief.
Note: In this pattern the doer is marked by に, the person bothered or inconvenienced by the action is marked by は, and the thing affected is marked by を.
3. Pattern 3: N は + passive。
Meaning: to be ~
Usage: used when an action is performed and the doer is not of particular interest, so the thing becomes the subject.
Examples:
あの ビールは 30 年まえに たてられました。
That building was built 30 years ago.
Note: When the thing is not particularly stressed as the topic, は is replaced by が. ここで ボディーが ようせつされます。The bodywork is welded here.
4. How the particle に is used
The particle に expressing a rate:
Examples:
一日に 1,500 台 自動車が 生産されています。
(1,500 cars are produced in a day.)
二人に 一人は 大学へ 行きます。
(One in every two people goes on to university.)