In Korean, the periphrastic passive construction is a way to express that something has undergone a change or has been acted upon. This is done by simply attaching the suffix “-아/어지다” to the verb stem. It can be used with stative verbs mostly to indicate that the subject has experienced a change in state. This construction can be used without mentioning what caused the change and rendered as “become + stative verb.”
Periphrastic Passive Suffix: “-아/어지다” with Stative Verbs
“-아지다” (If the preceding syllable contains the vowel “오” or “아”), otherwise “-어지다”
Stative Verbs
1. 깨끗하다 (clean)
방이 깨끗해졌어요. (The room became clean)
2. 춥다 (cold)
날씨가 추워졌어요. (The weather became cold)
3. 덥다 (hot)
물이 더워졌어요. (The water became hot)
4. 쉽다 (easy)
일이 쉬워졌어요. (The work became easy)
5. 예쁘다 (pretty)
그녀가 예뻐졌어요. (She became pretty)
6. 똑똑하다 (smart)
그가 똑똑해졌어요. (He became smart)
7. 복잡하다 (complicate)
상황이 복잡해졌어요. (The situation became complicated)
8. 어렵다 (difficult)
문제가 어려워졌어요. (The problem became difficult)
9. 편하다 (comfortable)
마음이 편해졌어요. [I became comfortable (or My mind became at ease)]
10. 낮다 (low)
그의 목소리가 낮아졌어요. (His voice became lower)
11. 깊다 (deep)
강이 깊어졌어요. (The river became deeper)
12. 맛있다 (delicious)
음식이 맛있어졌어요. (The food became delicious)
13. 멀다 (far)
거리가 멀어졌어요. (The distance became farther)
14. 흥미롭다 (interest)
그 일이 흥미로워졌어요. (The work became interesting)
15. 길다 (long)
그녀의 머리가 길어졌어요. (Her hair became longer)
Periphrastic Passive Suffix: “-아/어지다” with Action Verbs
“-아지다” (If the preceding syllable contains the vowel “오” or “아”), otherwise “-어지다”
Action verbs
1. 기다리다 (to wait)
오래 기다려졌어요. (It was waiting for a long time)
2. 만들다 (to make)
케이크가 만들어졌어요. (The cake was made)
3. 깨다 (to break)
유리가 깨졌어요. (The glass was broken)
4. 믿다 (to believe)
그의 말이 믿어졌어요. (His words were believed)
5. 끄다 (to turn off)
불이 꺼졌어요. (The light was turned off)
6. 쏟다 (to spill)
커피가 쏟아졌어요. (The coffee was spilled)
7. 이루다 (to achieve)
꿈이 이루어졌어요. (The dream was achieved)
8. 끊다 (to cut/stop)
전화가 끊어졌어요. (The call was cut off)
9. 켜다 (to turn on)
TV가 켜졌어요. (The TV was turned on)
10. 정하다 (to decide)
회의 시간이 정해졌어요. (The meeting time was decided)
11. 쓰다 (to write)
편지가 쓰여졌어요. (The letter was written)
12. 그리다 (to draw)
그림이 그려졌어요. (The picture was drawn)
13. 적다 (to write down)
메모가 적어졌어요. (The memo was written down)
14. 짓다 (to build)
집이 지어졌어요. (The house was built)
15. 걸다 (to hang)
그림이 걸어졌어요. (The picture was hung)
The periphrastic passive suffix “-아/어지다” in Korean is not only used with stative verbs but also with some action verbs. When attached to action verbs, they form a passive-like sentence structure that emphasizes the result or outcome of an action.
This construction doesn’t specify or focus on who performed the action (the doer), so it is sometimes referred to as “agentless passive” in linguistic literature.
Double Passive with the Periphrastic Passive Suffix
“-아지다” (If the preceding syllable contains the vowel “오” or “아”), otherwise “-어지다”
The double passive construction in Korean refers to a linguistic construction where the periphrastic passive suffix “-아/어지다” is added to a verb that has already been passivized using another passive form. This creates a situation where the verb carries two different passive suffixes focusing on the result of an action without specifying the doer’s action. The National Institute of Korean Language says not to use this construction, but it is often used in daily conversation by many Koreans.
믿다 -> 믿기다 -> 믿겨
그 소문이 믿겨졌어요.
(I was able to believe the rumor)
잊다 - 잊히다 -> 잊혀
그 기억이 잊혀지지 않아요.
(The memory is not easily forgotten)
닦다 -> 닦이다 -> 닦여 (to be wiped off)
때가 잘 닦여지지 않는다.
(The stains don’t come off easily)
자르다 -> 잘리다 -> 잘려
종이가 잘려졌어요.
(The paper was cut off)
섞다 -> 섞이다 -> 섞여 (to be mixed)
물과 기름은 잘 섞여지지 않는다.
(Oil and water don’t mix well)
찢다 -> 찢기다 -> 찢겨
옷이 갈기갈기 찢겨졌어요.
(The clothes were torn into pieces)
잠그다 -> 잠기다 -> 잠겨
문이 잠겨지지 않아요.
(The door doesn’t lock properly)
닫다 -> 닫히다 -> 닫혀
창문이 어제부터 닫혀있어요.
(The window has been closed since yesterday)
묻다 -> 묻히다 -> 묻혀
진실이 쉽게 묻혀졌어요.
(The truth got buried easily)
누르다 -> 눌리다 -> 눌려
버튼이 저절로 눌려졌어요.
(The button was pressed automatically)