📌 Passive Voice in Korean: Master -이/히/리/기 (+ -아/어지다)
📌 Passive Voice in Korean: Master -이/히/리/기 (+ -아/어지다)
Want to say “The door was closed” without naming who closed it?
Passive voice is core to polite, natural Korean—great for reporting results, avoiding blame, and focusing on outcomes. This guide gives you a fast map of -이/히/리/기 plus -아/어지다, high-frequency pairs to memorize, and mini-drills you can use today.
수동 표현은 존댓말과 간접적 표현에서 자주 쓰입니다. 이 글은 -이/히/리/기와 -아/어지다를 패턴+자주 쓰는 표현으로 정리했습니다.
📑 Table of Contents (open/close)
1) Why Passive Voice Matters
- Focus on results: 문이 닫혔어요. (The door was closed.) — outcome first.
- Polite/indirect tone: helpful when the agent is unknown/irrelevant/sensitive.
- Real usage: reports, notices, service updates, news, and everyday “oops” moments.
한국어는 결과 중심·조심스러운 톤을 선호하는 상황에서 수동 표현을 즐겨 씁니다.
2) Suffix Map: -이 / -히 / -리 / -기 (+ -아/어지다)
| Passive | High-frequency pairs (Active → Passive) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| -히 | 닫다 → 닫히다, 잡다 → 잡히다, 밟다 → 밟히다, 막다 → 막히다 | Extremely common with many -다/-ㅂ다 roots. |
| -리 | 열다 → 열리다, 풀다 → 풀리다, 물다 → 물리다, 걸다 → 걸리다 | “become X-ed / get X-ed”; also carries “get caught” sense (걸리다). |
| -기 | 끊다 → 끊기다, 쫓다 → 쫓기다, 안다 → 안기다, 뺏다 → 뺏기다 | Often “be chased/bitten/robbed” type events. |
| -이 | 쓰다 → 쓰이다 (be used/written), 쌓다 → 쌓이다, 놓다 → 놓이다 | Some are lexicalized: 보이다 “be seen/visible”. |
| -아/어지다 | 만들다 → 만들어지다, 바꾸다 → 바뀌다, 정리하다 → 정리되다 | General/resultative passive. Avoid double-passive (e.g., 닫혀지다 ❌). |
⚡ Reality check: Neat “final-consonant rules” only go so far. In practice, memorize the top pairs above and notice patterns as you meet more verbs.
3) Core Patterns (with agents/causes)
- N이/가 + Passive — 문이 닫혔어요. (The door was closed.)
- Agent with 에게/한테 — 개에게 물렸어요. (I was bitten by a dog.)
- Formal agent: N에 의해 — 행사가 학교에 의해 진행되었습니다.
- Cause with (바람/비/사람)+에 — 바람에 창문이 열렸어요.
- Resultative: -아/어지다 / -되다 — 도로가 넓어졌어요., 문제가 해결됐어요.
4) Examples (Hangul · RR · EN)
문이 닫혔어요.
mun-i dat-hyeot-seo-yo
The door was closed.
창문이 열렸어요.
chang-mun-i yeol-lyeot-seo-yo
The window was opened.
개에게 물렸어요.
gae-e-ge mul-lyeot-seo-yo
I was bitten by a dog.
아이를 안았어요 → 아이가 안겼어요.
a-i-reul an-ass-eo-yo → a-i-ga an-gyeot-seo-yo
I hugged the child → The child was hugged.
서류가 빨리 처리되었어요.
seo-ryu-ga ppalli cheo-ri-dweo-eoss-eo-yo
The documents were processed quickly.
📝 Mini Dialogue (open)
A: 보고서가 벌써 완성됐어요?
bo-go-seo-ga beol-sseo wan-seong-dwaess-eo-yo?
B: 네, 팀에서 어제 작성됐어요.
ne, tim-e-seo eo-je jak-seong-dwaess-eo-yo.
5) ❌ Common Mistakes
- Active vs Passive mix-up: ❌ 저는 문이 닫았어요 → ✔ 문이 닫혔어요 (subject receives action).
- Object marker with passive: ❌ 문을 닫혔어요 → ✔ 문이 닫혔어요 (use 이/가).
- Double passive: ❌ 닫혀졌어요 → ✔ 닫혔어요 (pick one: -히 or -어지다).
- Over-formality: everyday speech rarely needs 에 의해; use 에게/한테/에 when natural.
한국어 수동은 ‘문이 닫혔다’처럼 결과를 먼저 말하는 경향이 있습니다.
6) 👩🏫 Teacher’s Tips
- 2-minute habit: Convert 3 active lines you said today into passive (write/say both).
- Pair drilling: Make flash cards with Active → Passive for the table above.
- Shadow & swap: Shadow one line from dramas/news; replace the noun/agent with your own.
“Small changes compound into identity.” — One passive sentence a day is enough to become the person who notices Korean patterns.
7) 📘 More Posts You’ll Find Helpful
Keep momentum: read one more post now and say two lines out loud.
8) 🎓 italki Lesson
Want live practice & fast feedback? Book a 1:1 session and we’ll turn your active lines into natural passives you can use anywhere.
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