書かれる・
The passive form presents an action from the viewpoint of the person or thing receiving it or being affected by it. The actor may be named, but the affected participant is placed at the center of the sentence.
The basic viewpoint
In a basic passive sentence, the recipient or affected participant is marked by は or が, and the actor is commonly marked by に. The actor can be omitted when it is unknown, obvious, general, or unimportant.
Direct passive
弟は母に起こされました。
My younger brother was woken by our mother.
Analyze弟 receives the action, while 母 is the actor marked by に.
Facts and regular practices
この祭りは毎年八月に行われます。
This festival is held every August.
AnalyzeNo particular organizer needs to be named. This kind of agentless passive is natural in announcements, reports, and general descriptions.
When a possession or body part is affected
Japanese often makes the affected person the subject while leaving the relevant possession or body part marked by を. Do not automatically replace every active-sentence を with が.
Affected-person and indirect passives
私は電車で知らない人に足を踏まれました。
A stranger stepped on my foot on the train.
AnalyzeThe affected person is the subject, but 足 remains marked by を.
帰り道で雨に降られました。
I got caught in the rain on the way home.
AnalyzeThe rain is not acting directly on an object in an ordinary active sentence. The passive instead presents the rain as an event that affected the speaker.
The same shape can express ability
With ichidan verbs, the passive and potential forms both end in られる. Use the surrounding meaning and particles to decide whether someone receives an action or is able to do it. In the example below, the food is marked by が within an ability statement, and no actor is presented.
私は刺身が食べられます。
I can eat sashimi.
AnalyzeMore examples
この小説は十か国語に翻訳されています。
This novel has been translated into ten languages.
Analyze私は駅で知らない人に道を聞かれました。
A stranger asked me for directions at the station.
Analyze私は弟に大切な写真を捨てられて、悲しかったです。
I was upset because my younger brother threw away an important photo.
Analyze赤ちゃんに夜中に泣かれて、よく眠れませんでした。
The baby cried during the night, so I couldn't sleep well.
Analyzeこの寺は国内で最も古い建物の一つとして知られています。
This temple is known as one of the oldest buildings in the country.
Analyze彼女の研究は専門家に高く評価されました。
Her research was highly praised by experts.
Analyze