4 · Passive and causative
The long passive: -아/어지다 and 되다
passives for verbs without a suffix
Most verbs have no passive suffix: they take -아/어지다, and 하다 verbs swap 하다 for 되다.
A verb with no passive suffix takes -아/어지다, written as one word with the stem: 만들다 → 만들어지다, 정하다 → 정해지다, 알리다 → 알려지다, 지키다 → 지켜지다, 짓다 → 지어지다. The vowel and the irregular stems behave exactly as before -아요/어요.
A 하다 verb is mostly a noun with 하다, and its passive replaces 하다 with 되다: 결정하다 → 결정되다, 취소하다 → 취소되다, 발견하다 → 발견되다, 연결하다 → 연결되다. The polite forms contract as usual: 결정돼요, 결정됐어요; in formal writing 결정되었습니다. Only verbs with an object can do this — 운동하다 has no 운동되다.
These passives belong above all to news, notices and official writing: 회의가 취소되었습니다, 이 제품은 한국에서 만들어졌습니다. A doer is rare; when it is named, written Korean uses 에 의해(서). In conversation Koreans usually prefer an active sentence and simply leave out who did it — the subject of a later topic in this area, "When Korean uses a passive".
Two mistakes are typical. One is leaving the verb active when the subject is the thing affected: 회의가 취소했어요 says the meeting cancelled something. The other is piling two passives on top of each other: 열려지다, 쓰여지다, 닫혀지다 add -아/어지다 to verbs that are passive already, and editors strike them out.
The form
| verb + -아/어지다 | 만들다 → 만들어지다 |
| 하다 → 되다 | 결정하다 → 결정되다 |
| polite past | 결정됐어요 |
| formal | 취소되었습니다 |
| doer, in writing | 회사에 의해 결정되었습니다 |
| a feeling, not a passive | 걱정돼요 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
A verb with no passive suffix takes -아/어지다, written as one word.
모임 날짜가 다음 주 금요일로 정해졌어요.The date of the get-together has been set for next Friday.
A 하다 verb becomes passive by replacing 하다 with 되다.
비 때문에 경기가 취소됐어요.The match was cancelled because of the rain.
In news and notices the formal -되었습니다 is the usual form.
지하철 운행이 잠시 중단되었습니다.Underground services have been temporarily suspended.
Some 되다 verbs describe a feeling and are not passives at all.
내일 면접 때문에 너무 긴장돼요.I'm really nervous about tomorrow's interview.
A closer look
Double passives
Forms such as 열려지다, 쓰여지다 and 보여지다 stack -아/어지다 on a verb that already carries a passive suffix. They are common in speech and even in print, which is why learners pick them up, but usage guides treat them as redundant: 열리다, 쓰이다 and 보이다 are passive already.
The same goes for 되어지다, a 되다 passive with a second passive on top: 결정되어졌다 says nothing that 결정되었다 does not. If a sentence seems to need two passive markers, it usually wants one — or none, with an active verb.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the 하다 verb describes an activity with no object
it has no 되다 passive: there is no 운동되다 or 산책되다.
저는 매일 아침 공원에서 산책해요.I go for a walk in the park every morning.
A passive makes the object the subject. A verb without an object has nothing to promote.
How to spot it
- -아/어지다
- 되다
- -되었습니다
- 에 의해
Example sentences
이 건물은 백 년 전에 지어졌어요.This building was built a hundred years ago.
회의 시간이 세 시로 변경되었습니다.The meeting has been moved to three o'clock.
인터넷이 연결되지 않아요.The internet will not connect.
그 문제는 아직 해결되지 않았어요.That problem has not been solved yet.
이 제품은 한국에서 만들어졌습니다.This product was made in Korea.
오래된 그림이 창고에서 발견됐어요.An old painting was found in a storeroom.
8 more example sentences
이 소설은 여러 나라 말로 번역됐어요.This novel has been translated into several languages.
규칙은 모두에게 똑같이 적용돼야 해요.The rules must apply equally to everyone.
그 가수의 새 노래가 내일 공개됩니다.The singer's new song is released tomorrow.
비밀번호가 변경되었습니다.Your password has been changed.
약속은 지켜져야 합니다.Promises must be kept.
이 길은 시청까지 바로 연결돼요.This road leads straight to City Hall.
그 사람의 이름은 오래 기억될 거예요.That name will be remembered for a long time.
주문하신 물건이 오늘 배송됐습니다.The item you ordered was dispatched today.
Worth knowing (1)
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걱정되다 and 긴장되다
Some 되다 verbs are not passives of anything: they describe a feeling that comes over you. 걱정돼요 is "I am worried", 긴장돼요 "I am nervous", 안심돼요 "I feel relieved".
혼자 여행하는 딸이 걱정돼요.I am worried about my daughter travelling alone.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
With the festival as the subject the verb has to be passive. 축제가 취소했어요 would mean that the festival called something off.
No suffix? Add -a or -eo jida; a hada verb swaps hada for doeda.
Your turn
9 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.