What does passive voice mean?

In passive voice, the subject of the sentence is the recipient of the action rather than the doer. In other words, the focus is on the action being performed on the subject, rather than who or what is performing the action. For example, in the sentence " The book was read by Mary, " "the book" is the subject receiving the action of being read, and "Mary" is the one performing the action. Passive voice is often used to emphasize the action itself or the recipient of the action.

How to make the passive voice in Korean?

To form the passive voice in Korean, you typically add specific suffixes to the action verb based on its ending. • When the verb ends with a vowel or following consonants, ‘ ᄒ, ᄁ ’, you need to add 이 to the verb root. • When the verb ends with following consonants, ‘ᄇ, ᄀ, ᄃ,ᄌ, ᄑ’ you need to add 히. • When the verb ends with consonant, ‘ᄅ’, you need to add -리. • When the verb ends with consonant, ‘ᄂ , ᄎ , ᄉ , ᄆ’ you need to add -기.

What are exemples of Korean passive voice?

묻다 to bury → 묻히다 to be buried 보물이 땅에 묻혔어요. The treasure was buried in the ground. 막다 to block → 막히다 to be blocked 도로가 차들로 막혔어요.The road is blocked with cars. 열다 to open → 열리다 to be opened 문이 열렸어요. The door was opened.

Is Korean passive voice common?

Korean passive voice is not as common as active voice, however it is still important to know how things work.

Where to find more lessons like this?

You can visit our Korean Grammar Bank for more lessons on levels A1, A2, B1 and B2.

Can I learn Korean with LTL?

Yes! Learn Korean with a professional live teacher online on Flexi Classes , or in person in Seoul ( group and individual classes available). Feel free to contact us if you need to speak directly with a LTL Student Advisor.

B2

Grammar Point	Pattern	Example
Passive voice in Korean	Verb + -이 / -히 / -리 / -기	놓다 → 놓이다
Expressing surprise in Korean	Subject + Verb + (는) 구나 / 네 / 군	그녀가 부산에서 오는구나.
Expressing emphasis in Korean	Verb + ㄹ 뿐이다	그의 행동은 그녀를 더 밀어낼뿐이다.
Expressing worry or fear in Korean	Verb / Adjective + -(으)ㄹ까 봐	감기에 걸릴까 봐 걱정돼요.
Expectations in Korean	[Verb stem] + -았/었어야 했다	청소했어야 했다
Expressing hope in Korean	Verb + 기를 바라다	그는 좋은 대학에 가기를 바란다.
Expressing easy & difficult actions in Korean	[Verb stem] + -기 쉽다	청소하기 쉽다.
Expressing inevitability in Korean	Verb stem + 수밖에 없다	약속이 있어서 갈 수밖에 없어요.
Expressing unexpected, inevitable outcome	Verb stem + 고 말다	버스를 놓치고 말았어요.
Expressing "even though" in Korean	Subject + Verb + ㄴ지만	그는 아프지만 수업에참여합니다.
Expressing "pretending to" in Korean	Descriptive verb stem + -(으)는 척하다	그는 부자인 척했어요.
Expressing "no choice but to" in Korean	Verb stem + ㄹ/을 수밖에 없다	비가 와서 집에 있을 수밖에 없어요.