This morning, one of my boys opened our refrigerator and said, “Oh no, someone ate my cake!” He was devastated as he wanted to save his cake for later.

In Japanese, when something is stolen or taken away from you, we often use “passive verb” in our expression rather than “active” verb.  In the scenario above, you can also say: “My cake was eaten up by someone! ”  In Japanese, it is more common to express using passive verbs than just saying, “Someone ate my cake!”.  Using passive verb, it will be, ” Boku(watashi) no ke-ki ga darekani taberareta! ” – (僕の（わたしの）ケーキが誰かに食べられた！　ぼくの（わたしの）ケーキが　だれかに　たべられた！)

In this article, let me show you how you can use passive verbs in Japanese conversation.

==> My watch was stolen yesterday. – Tokei ga kinou nusumareta.

(時計が昨日、盗まれた。とけいが　きのう　ぬすまれた。)

==> I was scolded by my mother this morning. – Kesa watashi wa haha ni shikarareta.

(今朝、私は　母に　しかられた。けさ、わたしは　ははに　しかられた。)

==> My comic book was taken away by my teacher because I was reading it during the class. – Jyugyo chu ni yondeitanode, bokuno manga wa sensei ni bosshu sareta.

(授業中に読んでいたので、ぼくの漫画は没収された。じゅぎょうちゅうに　よんでいたので、ぼくの　まんがは　ぼっしゅう　された。)

Note here: Take away is often expressed in Japanese as “Bosshu suru(没収する, ぼっしゅう　する)”

Taken away will be “Bosshu sareru (ぼっしゅうされる)”

As you might have noticed, “~sareru (される) or ~rareru (られる) ” is a passive expression in Japanese.

Let’s convert the following verbs into passive forms.

 

Eat ==>

Taberu 食べる、たべる ==> Taberareru 食べられる、たべられる

Hit == >

Tataku 叩く、たたく==> Tatakareru 叩かれる、たたかれる

Steal==>

Nusumu 盗む、ぬすむ ==> Nusumareru 盗まれる、ぬすまれる

Break ==>

Kowasu 壊す、こわす ==> Kowasareru　壊される、こわされる

Scold==>

Shikaru 叱る、しかる ==> Shikarareru　叱られる、しかられる

Use ==>

Tsukau 使う、つかう ==> Tsukawareru　使われる、つかわれる

Praise==>

Homeru 褒める、ほめる==> Homerareru　褒められる、ほめられる

 

Pay close attention to how each verb changes as it is converted into passive form. Let’s try making the sentence: I was scolded by my father. How would you say this in Japanese? Share your answers in the comment section. Answer will be posted tomorrow. 🙂

==> Answer is:

Watashi wa chichi ni shikarareta. 私は、父に叱られた。わたしは、ちちに　しかられた。

(I was scolded by my father. )