Causative vs Passive in Korean: Differences, Rules and Examples

What you'll learn

• Tell a causative from a passive using three simple tests.
• Recognise verbs that carry both meanings, such as 보이다 and 안기다.
• Compare six patterns: the passive suffixes, -아/어지다, -되다, the causative suffixes, -게 하다 and -시키다.
• Avoid the five most common mix-ups.

Before you start: you should know the particles 이/가, 을/를 and 에게, and you should have seen both the passive and the causative at least once. If not, start with passive suffixes 이 히 리 기 and causative suffixes 이 히 리 기 우 구 추. Audio plays only when you press a button.

What Is the Difference in Causative vs Passive in Korean?

A causative says that one person makes or lets another person act. A passive says that the subject receives the action. Korean uses the same four suffixes (이, 히, 리 and 기) for both, so the shape of the verb does not show which one you are looking at.

• Causative: the subject is the causer. 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹여요. The subject, Mom, makes the baby eat.
• Passive: the subject is the receiver. 닭이 여우에게 먹혔어요. The subject, the chicken, receives the action.

A First Example

• 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹여요. (eommaga agiege babeul meogyeoyo.) [엄마가 아기에게 바블 머겨요] = "Mom feeds the baby."
• 닭이 여우에게 먹혔어요. (dalgi yeouege meokyeosseoyo.) [달기 여우에게 머켜써요] = "The chicken was eaten by the fox."

Both sentences have a noun with 에게 in them. In the first, 아기에게 marks the causee, the one who eats. In the second, 여우에게 marks the agent, the one who eats the chicken. The particle looks the same, but the roles are opposite. The next section gives three tests.

How Do You Tell a Causative from a Passive?

Three tests decide most sentences. Use them in order.

1. Who is the subject? In a causative, the subject is the one who makes the action happen (엄마). In a passive, the subject is the one who receives it (닭).
2. Is there an 을/를 object? A causative of a verb like 먹다 keeps its object: 아기에게 밥을 먹여요. A passive has no object: 여우에게 먹혔어요.
3. Count the noun phrases. Compare with the plain sentence. A causative adds one person, the causer. A passive keeps the same people but swaps their roles.

The table applies the three tests to the sentences above.

The table shows why 에게 alone cannot decide. In the causative, 에게 marks the person who is made to act. In the passive, it marks the agent. Look at the other clues. The next section explains verbs where even the verb has two meanings.

Which Verbs Have Both Meanings?

A few verbs carry both readings, and the sentence has to show which one is meant. The table lists four of them.

Here is each verb in a pair of sentences. The first is passive, and the second is causative.

• 산이 보여요. (sani boyeoyo.) [사니 보여요] = "The mountain can be seen."
• 친구에게 사진을 보여 줬어요. (chinguege sajineul boyeo jwosseoyo.) [친구에게 사지늘 보여 줘써요] = "I showed a photo to my friend."
• 이 책은 많이 읽혀요. (i chaegeun mani ilkyeoyo.) [이 채근 마니 일켜요] = "This book is widely read."
• 선생님이 학생에게 책을 읽혀요. (seonsaengnimi haksaengege chaegeul ilkyeoyo.) [선생니미 학쌩에게 채글 일켜요] = "The teacher has the student read a book."

In each pair, test 1 and test 2 give the answer. The passive sentences have a thing as subject and no object. The causative sentences have a person as subject and an object. The next section works through a full example.

Worked Example: One Verb, Two Sentences

The same verb can sit in a causative and a passive sentence, and the tests separate them. Follow the verb 물리다 in these two sentences.

1. 아이가 개에게 물렸어요. (aiga gaeege mullyeosseoyo.) [아이가 개에게 물려써요]
2. 엄마가 아기에게 젖병을 물렸어요. (eommaga agiege jeotbyeongeul mullyeosseoyo.) [엄마가 아기에게 젇뼝을 물려써요]

Apply the tests:

1. Subject. In sentence 1, 아이가 is a child who receives something. In sentence 2, 엄마가 is a person who makes something happen.
2. Object. Sentence 1 has no 을/를 noun. Sentence 2 has 젖병을 ("baby bottle").
3. Plain sentence. Sentence 1 comes from 개가 아이를 물었어요 ("A dog bit the child"). Sentence 2 comes from 아기가 젖병을 물었어요 ("The baby held the bottle in its mouth").
4. Decide. Sentence 1 is passive: "The child was bitten by a dog." Sentence 2 is causative: "Mom put the bottle in the baby's mouth."

You know it worked when you can name the plain sentence behind each one. The causative adds a person, and the passive swaps roles. The next section places all six patterns side by side.

How Do the Six Patterns Compare?

Korean has three ways to make a passive and three ways to make a causative. Only one pair shares the same shapes.

The table shows that only the suffix passive and the suffix causative overlap. The other four patterns have their own shapes: -아/어지다 and -되다 are always passive or "become", and -게 하다 and -시키다 are always causative. The pages -아/어지다 become passive, -되다 passive 하다 verbs, causative -게 하다 and -시키다 causative teach each one.

When Is the Meaning Unclear?

Context settles most cases, but a few situations need care.

• Subjects can be dropped. Korean often leaves out the subject. 아이를 재워요 ("I put the child to sleep") is causative even without a visible causer. Look at the verb and the object.
• Passive pairs that are intransitive. 문이 열려요 ("The door opens") has no agent in mind, so many grammar books treat it as a plain intransitive verb rather than a true passive. See korean transitive and intransitive verb pairs.
• "Have something done." Korean usually uses an active verb. 머리를 잘랐어요 ("I got my hair cut") is the normal sentence, while 머리가 잘렸어요 sounds as if the hair was cut off against your will.
• Agent particles. 에게 can be replaced by 한테, and non-human agents take 에, as the page on passive agent 에게 에 의해 shows.

This lesson compares the two ideas and does not teach the full lists of verbs. The mistakes below show where learners go wrong.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make?

Learners most often read the suffix as the meaning or trust 에게 too much. Five mistakes appear again and again.

1. Reading 보이다 only one way. 산이 보여요 is passive, while 친구에게 사진을 보여 줬어요 is causative. Check the subject.
2. Using the passive for "feed". 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹혀요 is wrong. Use 먹여요.
3. Treating 에게 as a passive signal. 에게 appears in both. Look for the 을/를 object.
4. Assuming every 이/히/리/기 verb is ambiguous. 입히다 is only causative (옷을 입혀요, "I dress someone"), and 열리다 is only passive. Learn each verb as a pair.
5. Using the passive for "have it done". 머리가 잘렸어요 does not mean "I got my hair cut". Say 머리를 잘랐어요.

A quick check helps: Who is the subject? Is there an 을/를 object? Which plain sentence does it come from? If you can answer all three, you know which reading is right.

The practice set tests these points.

Practice and Answers

Try the four items before you read the answers.

1. Choose the form. Complete: 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 ___. (먹여요 / 먹혀요)
2. Fix the error. A learner says 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹혀요 for "Mom feeds the baby". Correct it.
3. Translate. "The teacher has the student read a book." Use 읽히다.
4. Write your own. Write one passive and one causative sentence with the same verb (보이다 or 물리다).

Answer key

1. 먹여요. Mom causes the baby to eat, so the causative 먹이다 is needed.
2. 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹여요. 먹히다 is passive.
3. 선생님이 학생에게 책을 읽혀요. (seonsaengnimi haksaengege chaegeul ilkyeoyo.) [선생니미 학쌩에게 채글 일켜요]
4. Answers vary. Check the subject and the object in each. An example with 보이다: 별이 보여요 ("The stars can be seen") and 친구에게 별을 보여 줬어요 ("I showed the stars to my friend").

If you can complete items 1 to 3 without the key, you can tell the two patterns apart in conversation. The next section points to related lessons.

What Should You Learn Next after Causative vs Passive in Korean?

After this comparison, deepen the pattern you need most. This lesson compares the two ideas. It does not teach each pattern in full.

1. Read passive suffixes 이 히 리 기 for the passive pairs.
2. Read causative suffixes 이 히 리 기 우 구 추 for the causative pairs.
3. Read passive agent 에게 에 의해 to choose the right agent particle.
4. Read causative -게 하다 for the pattern that works on any verb.
5. Browse korean grammar differences for other contrasts.
6. Return to the full set of korean passive verbs.

With these steps, the pattern becomes automatic: find the subject, look for the object, and name the plain sentence behind the verb.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a causative and a passive in Korean?

In a causative, the subject makes or lets someone else act: 엄마가 아기에게 밥을 먹여요 (Mom feeds the baby). In a passive, the subject receives the action: 닭이 여우에게 먹혔어요 (the chicken was eaten by the fox). Ask who the subject is in the sentence: the one who causes the action, or the one who receives it.

Why do 먹이다 and 먹히다 look so similar?

Korean uses the same set of suffixes (이, 히, 리, 기) for both ideas, so the shapes overlap. 먹이다 is the causative of 먹다 (feed) and 먹히다 is the passive (be eaten). The suffix does not show the meaning, so learn each verb as a pair.

How can I tell the two apart when I see 에게?

에게 marks the causee in a causative and the agent in a passive, so it cannot decide alone. Look for an 을/를 object. A causative of a verb like 먹다 keeps the object (아기에게 밥을 먹여요), while a passive has none (여우에게 먹혔어요). Also check who the subject is.

Which verbs can mean both?

A few verbs carry both readings. 보이다 means "be seen" or "show", 안기다 means "be held in arms" or "hand over to hold", 읽히다 means "be read" or "make someone read", and 물리다 means "be bitten" or "put into someone's mouth". Context and particles tell you which one is meant.

Do -게 하다 and -아/어지다 cause the same confusion?

No. -게 하다 is always causative and -아/어지다 is always passive or "become". Their shapes are different, so there is little risk of mixing them up. The confusion comes mainly from the suffixes 이, 히, 리 and 기.

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