In active voice sentences, subjects ‘do’ some actions while subjects ‘get/receive’ some actions in passive voice sentences.
(내가) 문을 열었다. I opened the door. (active voice)
문이 열렸다. The door is open. (by wind/someone) (passive voice)
There are two ways to make a passive sentence in Korean. The first one is with ‘passive verbs’, and the other one is ‘Verb+아/어/여지다’. For example,
경찰이 도둑을 잡았다. (잡다 : to catch, grab) – Police caught a thief.
도둑이 경찰한테 잡혔다. (잡히다 : be caught) – A thief was caught by police.
or
동생이 접시를 깼다. (깨다 : to break) – My sister broke a plate.
접시가 깨졌다. (깨어지다 => 깨지다 : be broken) – A plate was broken.
If a verb has a passive form, you should use the passive form. If not, you use -아/어/여지다.
Passive verbs are already fixed, mostly are added -이-, -히-, -리-, -기- after a verb stem. For example,
- Verbs with -이-
| 동사(Verb) | 피동사(Passive verb) | 피동문(Passive sentence) |
| 보다(to see) | 보이다 | 칠판이 잘 안 보여요.I can’t see the black board. |
| 쓰다(to write) | 쓰이다 | 영어로 쓰인 책을 읽을 수 없어요. I can’t read books written in English. |
| 놓다(to put on) | 놓이다 | 책상 위에 놓인 책은 가지고 가지 마세요. Please don’t take those books that are on the desk. |
| 쌓다(to stack) | 쌓이다 | 눈이 많이 쌓여서 학교에 갈 수 없어요. I can’t go to school because the snow piles up too much. |
| 섞다(to mix) | 섞이다 | 물과 기름은 섞이지 않아요. Water and oil don’t mix. |
| 바꾸다(to change) | 바뀌다 | 친구와 핸드폰이 바뀌었어요. I took my friend’s phone by accident. |
- Verb with -히-
| 동사(Verb) | 피동사(Passive verb) | 피동문(Passive sentence) |
| 먹다 | 먹히다 | 토끼가 사자한테 먹히지 않으려고 도망간다. The rabbit is running away not to be eaten by a Lion. |
| 읽다 | 읽히다 | 이 책은 어려워서 잘 안 읽힌다. I can’t read this book fast because it is too difficult. |
| 잡다 | 잡히다 | 도둑이 경찰한테 잡혔다. A thief was caught by police. |
| 밟다 | 밟히다 | 버스 안에서 발을 밟혀서 정말 아팠다. I was stepped on my foot, it was really hurt. |
| 접다 | 접히다 | 돈이 접혀서 ATM기에 안 들어간다. I can’t put the money in the ATM machine because it is folded. |
| 업다 | 업히다 | 아기가 엄마 등에 업혀 있다. The mom gives the baby a piggyback ride. The baby is on the mom’s back. |
- Verb with -리-
| 동사(Verb) | 피동사(Passive verb) | 피동문(Passive sentence) |
| 팔다 | 팔리다 | 이 펜은 싸서 잘 팔린다. This pen is sold very well because it’s cheap. |
| 밀다 | 밀리다 | 차가 밀려서 좀 늦었어요. I was late because there was a traffic jam. |
| 풀다 | 풀리다 | 이 머리 끈은 잘 안 풀려서 좋다. This hair band is good because it is not loose. |
| 열다 | 열리다 | 문이 잘 안 열리니까 세게 열어야 돼요. You have to open really hard because it doesn’t open very well. |
| 걸다 | 걸리다 | 전화가 안 걸리는데요. The phone can’t get through. |
| 듣다 | 들리다 | 잘 안 들리는데 크게 말해 주시겠어요? I can’t hear you, can you speak louder? |
- Verb with -기-
| 동사(Verb) | 피동사(Passive verb) | 피동문(Passive sentence) |
| 안다 | 안기다 | 아기가 아빠에게 안겨서 잠을 잔다. The baby is sleeping in the dad’s arms. |
| 씻다 | 씻기다 | 이 얼룩이 잘 안 씻겨서 두 번이나 빨았어요. This stain doesn’t go away that well, so I washed twice. |
| 찢다 | 찢기다 | 이 책의 45쪽이 찢겨서 읽을 수 없어요. The page 45 of this book was ripped, so I can’t read. |
| 쫓다 | 쫓기다 | 도둑이 경찰한테 쫓기고 있습니다. The thief is chased by police. |
| 뺏다 | 뺏기다 | 오늘 강도를 만나서 돈을 뺏겼어요. I was robbed by a robber today. |
| 끊다 | 끊기다 | 전화가 끊겨서 이야기를 다 못했어요. I couldn’t finish talking because the phone was cut off. |
If there are not matching passive verbs, then add -아/어/여지다 after a verb stem.
| 동사 | -아/어/여지다 | |
| 만들다 | 만들어지다 | 이 병은 유리로 만들어졌어요. This bottle is made of glass. |
| 깨다 | 깨지다 | 컵이 떨어져서 깨졌어요. The cup was dropped and broken. |
| 켜다 | 켜지다 | 손을 대면 불이 저절로 켜질 거예요. If you touch, the light will be on automatically. |
| 끄다 | 꺼지다 | 전기가 나가서 텔레비전이 꺼졌어요. The power was off, so TV was turned off. |
| 이루다 | 이루어지다 | 소원이 이루어질 거예요. Your dream will be come true. |
Passive voice is often confusing with causative sentences which are ‘make/have/let someone do’, but they are different.
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