Passive and Causative Voice

Quick Reference

Passive Voice (피동): Subject receives the action

• Suffixes: -이-, -히-, -리-, -기-
• 보다 → 보이다 (to be seen)
• 듣다 → 들리다 (to be heard)

Causative Voice (사동): Subject causes someone else to do something

• Suffixes: -이-, -히-, -리-, -기-, -우-, -추-
• 먹다 → 먹이다 (to feed)
• 입다 → 입히다 (to dress someone)

Overview

Korean has two voice transformations that change how actions relate to subjects:

Passive Voice (피동)

The passive voice shifts focus from the doer to the receiver of an action.

English comparison: - Active: "I opened the door" - Passive: "The door was opened (by me)"

Korean: - Active: 제가 문을 열었어요 - Passive: 문이 열렸어요

Formation methods:

1. Suffix addition (most common): -이/히/리/기-
2. Auxiliary verbs: -아/어지다, -게 되다

Causative Voice (사동)

The causative voice indicates that the subject makes or allows someone else to perform an action.

English comparison: - Direct: "The baby ate" - Causative: "I fed the baby" (I made the baby eat)

Korean: - Direct: 아기가 먹었어요 - Causative: 아기에게 먹였어요

Formation methods:

1. Suffix addition: -이/히/리/기/우/추-
2. Auxiliary verbs: -게 하다

Key Differences

Passive vs. Causative

Type	Focus	Example	Meaning
Active	Doer performs action	보다	to see
Passive	Receiver of action	보이다	to be seen
Causative	Causing action	보이다	to show (make see)

Important: Some verbs look identical but meaning depends on context:

• 보이다 (passive): 별이 보여요 (Stars are visible)
• 보이다 (causative): 사진을 보여요 (I show a photo)

Identifying Passive vs. Causative

Passive indicators: - Subject is affected by the action - Often translated with "to be + past participle" - No agent making someone do something

Causative indicators: - Subject causes someone/something to act - Often has an indirect object (에게, 한테) - Translated with "make/let/have someone do"

Common Patterns

Overlapping Forms

Some verbs have the same form for both passive and causative:

Base	Passive/Causative	Passive Meaning	Causative Meaning
먹다	먹히다	to be eaten	to be fed
읽다	읽히다	to be read	to make read
신다	신기다	(rare)	to put shoes on someone

Context determines meaning:

1. 이 책이 잘 읽혀요. (Passive - This book reads well)
2. 아이에게 책을 읽혀요. (Causative - I make the child read a book)

Suffix Selection

No strict rule exists for which suffix to use - it's lexically determined:

-이-: 보다 → 보이다, 먹다 → 먹이다, 쌓다 → 쌓이다 -히-: 잡다 → 잡히다, 읽다 → 읽히다, 닫다 → 닫히다 -리-: 들다 → 들리다, 울다 → 울리다, 열다 → 열리다 -기-: 안다 → 안기다, 신다 → 신기다, 벗다 → 벗기다 -우-: 자다 → 재우다, 서다 → 세우다 (causative only) -추-: 낮다 → 낮추다, 높다 → 높추다 (causative only)

Usage Notes

Passive Voice

When Koreans use passive:

1. Focus on the result rather than the doer
2. Formal or written contexts
3. When the agent is unknown or unimportant
4. Natural phenomena or states

Less common than English: - Korean often prefers active constructions - Where English uses passive, Korean might use active with different subject

Causative Voice

Common uses:

1. Parents with children (feeding, dressing, etc.)
2. Teaching contexts (making students learn)
3. Service contexts (having someone do something)
4. Instructions and commands

Structure Summary

Passive Constructions

With suffixes:

Subject + 이/가 + Passive Verb
문이 열렸어요. (The door opened/was opened.)

With -아/어지다:

Subject + 이/가 + Adjective/Verb stem + 아/어지다
날씨가 추워졌어요. (The weather became cold.)

Causative Constructions

With suffixes:

Subject + 이/가 + Object + 에게/한테 + Causative Verb
엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹였어요. (Mom fed the baby.)

With -게 하다:

Subject + 이/가 + Object + 에게/한테 + Verb stem + 게 하다
선생님이 학생들에게 숙제를 하게 했어요. (The teacher made the students do homework.)

Learning Path

1. Start with: Common passive/causative pairs (보이다, 들리다, 먹이다)
2. Practice: Distinguishing passive from causative in context
3. Expand: Learn verb-specific suffix patterns
4. Master: Alternative constructions (-아/어지다, -게 하다)

Proceed to the detailed sections: - Passive Verbs - Comprehensive verb lists and formations - Causative Verbs - Causative suffix patterns and usage - Passive Expressions - Alternative passive constructions