12 votes
Accepted

私に言われても versus 私が言われても

私に言われても is Suffering Passive (迷惑の受身), a kind of Indirect Passive Structure (間接受身構文), and 私が言われても is Direct Passive Structure (直接受身構文). 「(あなたが)私に言う」 (Active/能動) "You tell me." → Direct Passive: 「私が(...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
10 votes

How to say "by ___"

"に" coupled with the passive form of a verb will do the trick. I was rejected by him 彼に断られた I was laughed at by him 彼に笑われた In the above examples, the English "by" would ...
Amani Kilumanga's user avatar
10 votes
Accepted

Meaning of 小せェもんに縛られてる

This 小せえもん ("trivial things") is a paraphrase of 国のため(とか). It's read like trivial things such as "for our country" or "For our country"... such trivial things. In other words, this guy is making light ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
10 votes
Accepted

Understanding 軍服に着られた

It is a rhetorical use of passive voice. 服に着られる basically means the person in the clothes gives a funny impression, e.g. the size is too big, it simply does not go well, etc. (Added) It is less common ...
sundowner's user avatar
  • 32.6k
9 votes
Accepted

Why is に used with this verb?

逃げられたの 彼氏に!! As you've noticed, this is an inverted word order of: 彼氏に逃げられたの 逃げられた here is Suffering Passive (迷惑の受身), which is a kind of Indirect Passive (間接受身). As you know, in passive ...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
8 votes
Accepted

Meaning of volitional passive form

「何, どこ, だれ, いつ etc. + ~~(よ)うが」 「何, どこ, だれ, いつ etc. + ~~(よ)うと(も)」 「何, どこ, だれ, いつ etc. + ~~ても」 mean "No matter what, where, who, etc. ~~". For example: 何を言おうが / 何を言おうと(も) / 何を言っても (No matter what ~~...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
8 votes

Can the auxiliary ~やがる be used with passive voice?

あいつに邪魔されやがった isn't ungrammatical, but it would be unnatural in the context you're probably thinking of, because やがる indicates negative feeling towards the subject of the verb it's attached to. So in ...
Ben Roffey's user avatar
  • 6,681
8 votes

Direct or indirect passive form?

外国人に質問を聞かれたが、答えられなかった。 I interpret the sentence as "I was asked a question by a foreigner but couldn't answer" (に in 外国人に marks 動作主/agent of 聞く), and I don't think it's Indirect Passive Structure (...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
8 votes

The meaning of ”あれは魔術師に与えられた祝福”

あれは魔術師に与えられた祝福(だ) is ambiguous. That is a blessing given to a sorcerer. (the same as あれは魔術師へ与えられた祝福だ, which is unambiguous) That is a blessing given by a sorcerer. (the same as あれは魔術師{から/より}与えられた祝福だ, ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
8 votes
Accepted

Meaning of 怒られた, scolded or angry at?

In this case it is 方言を知らない人(A)が(方言を使う人Bに)「これをなげて」と言われて、「投げる」だと(Aが)解釈して、(Aが)ごみを投げ返して(Bに)怒られたという話がある。 And the 怒られる is just a standard passive of “BがAに怒った” (B ‘madded at’ A) → “AがBに怒られた” (A got ‘...
Darius Jahandarie's user avatar
7 votes
Accepted

Subject and object of a passive sentence are interchangeable?

I'll present one model for thinking about Japanese passives -- hopefully it will help. Consider the underlying active sentence: 誰かが [私の]背中を 押した。 To make it passive, you demote the が-marked ...
Darius Jahandarie's user avatar
7 votes

How does one make potential passive in Japanese?

According to Imabi Passive and the potential is impossible. ...Even if it does sound feasible, ~ことができる would be the closest match. ...Japanese doesn't allow grammatical items to be doubled next ...
Darcinon's user avatar
  • 1,213
7 votes
Accepted

Grammar and meaning of 凝りに凝って出された

A(連用形)にA(活用) uses repetition of the same verb as a pattern for emphasis; the 活用 part is often seen as ~て or ~た. Here 凝{こ}る means to pour an inordinate amount of focus / energy into something. To give ...
Brandon's user avatar
  • 2,361
7 votes
Accepted

Difference between 〜に限らない and 〜に限られていない?

限られていない is the te-form of the passive voice of 限る, followed by いる to denote the continuation of state. So the literal translation is "has not been limited". Basically ~ていない focuses more on how things ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
7 votes
Accepted

"Was Warned that ..." (correct word choice / use of passive?)

I was also warned that Japan has very hot summers and that I should be careful. How about... 日本の夏はとても(orすごく)暑いので気をつけるように、とも言われました。 「~~ように(と)言う」 means "tell someone to do~~". Its passive form is ...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
7 votes

What is 誘われて (Sasowarete) in this song lyric?

The base 誘う's te-form would be 誘って, but it's not just the basic 誘う. 誘う = base 誘われる = passive form 誘われて = passive form's te-form In your song it indicates to be invited by something/someone.
Ringil's user avatar
  • 8,494
6 votes
Accepted

もらわれていくの grammar

It's possible to explain the grammar (and that's what OP asked for) もらわ: The nai-form of the verb もらう ("to receive/get/take"). れ: The te-form of the auxiliary verb れる, which forms the passive voice. ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
6 votes

Grammar and meaning of 凝りに凝って出された

Repetition of verbs are very often used to emphasize the significance or insignificance of the speaker’s or hearer’s action. It depends on the context. For instances: 選りも選ってこんな品を寄越したな! – You sent me ...
Yoichi Oishi's user avatar
  • 9,505
6 votes

When to use 受身形 (passive voice) And when to use 能動形 (active voice)?

ジョンは先生に質問をした focuses on what John did, whereas 先生はジョンに質問をされた focuses on what happened to the teacher. As you know, the word marked with は is the topic of the sentence. These two sentences look equally ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
6 votes
Accepted

Usage of 方 to mean person, interchangeability of くれる and もらう and passive form

To answer your first question: Giving and receiving verbs can be quite tricky. Let's work through it 少しずつ. If the verb is もらう, then the subject is receiving something (or a verb in this case) from the ...
tcallred's user avatar
  • 1,313
6 votes
Accepted

Is there a reason why the passive and the potential form are identical (at least for える/いる verbs)?

Etymologically, various usages of れる/られる derived from one base meaning, "without someone's will". In modern Japanese, れる/られる is still sometimes used in this sense (known as 自発【じはつ】 or "...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
6 votes
Accepted

Difference between します and されます

The basic difference between します and されます is simple; します is active and されます is passive (and sometimes honorific). 紹介します。 I will introduce (someone to someone). 紹介されます。 I will be introduced (to ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k
6 votes

Could you please explain the use of passive voice in the following sentences?

This is going to be long, so bear with me. One of the main reasons the passive voice is used in language is to be able to control 1) the flow of information and 2) what the subject/topic is at any ...
sbkgs4686's user avatar
  • 3,060
6 votes

Why is this sentence passive?

これには砂糖が含まれていますか。 含まれ(る) here is passive. It literally means "In this, is sugar contained?" これには砂糖が含んでいますか。 is incorrect. You could instead say: これは砂糖を含んでいますか。 which literally means &...
chocolate's user avatar
  • 65.3k
6 votes
Accepted

Why are there separate passive versions of so many verbs? How do they differ in meaning from the regular passive conjugation?

You misunderstand, likely due to the challenges of translation and of explaining one language using the words and constructions of another. Verbs like 潰【つぶ】れる and 漬【つ】かる are not passive, but rather ...
Eiríkr Útlendi's user avatar
6 votes
Accepted

Using passive voice with transitive and intransitive verbs

Summary: ❌ パソコンがこわれられた。 (ungrammatical) パソコンにこわれられた。 My PC broke (on its own, and I'm troubled). パソコンをこわされた。 I had my PC broken (by someone, and I'm troubled). Someone broke my PC (and I'm troubled). ...
naruto's user avatar
  • 307k

Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible