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For a while now I've been trying to write "[I'm happy that] X chose me", and I've come across the following:

Xが選んでくれて
Xに選ばれてくれて
Xに選んでもらって

Where the second option (passive + くれる) actually seems to have the most number of hits, despite me having never learned it and no English sites explaining it either. But I can't make sense of it. くれる talks about the giver, while the passive form refers to the speaker/receiver. What does this structure mean?

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Aが Xに 選ばれてくれて 私はうれしい means "I'm glad that X chose A / A is chosen by X". It indicates that compared with X, A is closer to 私 and 私 thanks A.

Xに選ばれてくれて can't mean "X chose me" unless you see the situation from a different viewpoint.

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  • Thanks, that makes a lot more sense. But by 私 thanks A do you mean 私 thanks X (for choosing A)?
    – idlackage
    Sep 10, 2017 at 15:40
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    As I wrote, I mean "私 thanks A". The one chosen by X is A, so the one who 私 thanks is A. That's how the passive sentence works with くれて.
    – user4092
    Sep 10, 2017 at 23:58

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