Passive and causative
The Japanese passive (れる・られる) is not used, as in English reports, to sound impersonal; it is often used to complain: 雨に降られた, “I got rained on”, with the rain as agent and me as the wronged party. It is built by shifting group 1 to the あ row plus れる (読む → 読まれる) and group 2 with られる (食べる → 食べられる); the agent takes に. The causative (せる・させる) is “make” or “let”: 子供に野菜を食べさせる. And the two together, the causative-passive, is how you say you were forced: 待たせられた, “I was made to wait”. Note that 食べられる is both passive and potential: only context decides.
Where this sits
- Comes after
- Dictionary form and plain style
Exercises from this rung
Generated by the app, from easiest to hardest
帰り道で雨に___。
- 降られました
- 降れました
- 降りました
- 降らせました
Why This is the adversative passive, which English lacks: the rain as agent and me as victim. It is used with intransitive verbs and always implies a complaint: 子供に泣かれた, 友達に来られた.
easier母は子供に野菜を___。
- 食べました
- 食べられました
- 食べさせられました
- 食べさせました
Why The causative of group 2 adds させる: 食べる → 食べさせる. When the verb already has an object (野菜を), the person made to act takes に; with no object, they may take を: 子供を行かせる.
in between少し休ま___ください。
- せて
- して
- れて
- せられて
Why せてください is not “make me” but “let me”: the causative also serves to ask permission humbly. It is the formula for requesting in an office: 説明させてください.
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