-되다 Passive 하다 Verbs: Meaning, Rules and Examples

What you'll learn

• Swap 하다 for 되다 to make a passive or "it happens" verb.
• Spell 되어요 as 돼요 and 되었어요 as 됐어요.
• Turn an active 하다 sentence into a 되다 sentence in four steps.
• Choose between -되다, 하다, 받다/당하다 and -아/어지다.
• Fix the five most common mistakes.

Before you start: you should know that many Korean verbs are built from a noun plus 하다, such as 공부하다 ("study"), and you should know the polite ending -아요/어요. Audio plays only when you press a button.

What Does the -되다 Passive of 하다 Verbs Mean?

A passive sentence is one where the subject receives the action, as in "The problem was solved". Korean makes the passive of a noun + 하다 verb by replacing 하다 with 되다. The noun stays the same, so the pair is easy to see: 해결하다 and 해결되다.

• Active with 하다: someone does it. 학생들이 문제를 해결했어요. (haksaengdeuri munjereul haegyeolhaesseoyo.) [학쌩드리 문제를 해결해써요] = "The students solved the problem."
• Passive with 되다: the result is in focus. 문제가 해결됐어요. (munjega haegyeoldwaesseoyo.) [문제가 해결돼써요] = "The problem was solved."

In the second sentence, the object 문제를 of the first sentence becomes the subject 문제가. The doer disappears, because 되다 puts the result in focus.

A First Example

• 이 책은 한국어로 번역되었어요. (i chaegeun hangugeoro beonyeokdoeeosseoyo.) [이 채근 한구거로 버녁뙤어써요] = "This book was translated into Korean."
• 문제가 해결됐어요. (munjega haegyeoldwaesseoyo.) [문제가 해결돼써요] = "The problem was solved."

In the first sentence, 책은 is the topic and acts as the subject, 한국어로 means "into Korean" and 번역되었어요 is 번역되다 in the polite past. In the second sentence, 해결됐어요 is the short form of 해결되었어요. Neither sentence names who did the work. The next section shows how the pairs are built.

How Does the -되다 Passive 하다 Verbs Pattern Work?

The -되다 pattern works in two steps: replace 하다 with 되다, and then conjugate 되다. The noun in front can be any word that is a result or an event. The table lists nine common pairs in the dictionary form with the polite present.

The table shows one rule applied nine times. Most of these nouns come from Chinese-based vocabulary, which Korean calls Sino-Korean words. The nouns that describe results and events take 되다 most easily.

• 이 단어는 요즘 많이 사용돼요. (i daneoneun yojeum mani sayongdwaeyo.) [이 다너는 요즘 마니 사용돼요] = "This word is used a lot these days."
• 새로운 별이 발견됐어요. (saeroun byeori balgyeondwaesseoyo.) [새로운 벼리 발견돼써요] = "A new star was discovered."

Some 되다 verbs also work as plain "it happens" verbs, with nothing to be undone by someone. 회의가 시작됐어요 (hoeuiga sijakdwaesseoyo) [회의가 시작뙈써요] means "The meeting started." The next part explains the spelling of 되다 itself.

Spelling: 되, 돼 and 됐

The verb 되다 changes its spelling when an ending begins with 어. The stem 되 plus 어 contracts to 돼. The past 되었어요 contracts to 됐어요.

There is a simple test. If you can put 하 or 해 in the same place, you write 돼 or 되 by the same pattern: 해요 matches 돼요, and 하고 matches 되고. The spelling 됬어요 never exists, because the contraction is 됐어요. The next section builds a full sentence.

Worked Example: from 하다 to 되다

The -되다 pattern turns an active 하다 sentence into a passive one in four steps. Follow the sentence "The students solved the problem."

1. Start with the active sentence. 학생들이 문제를 해결했어요. (haksaengdeuri munjereul haegyeolhaesseoyo.) The doer is 학생들, and the object is 문제를.
2. Move the object to subject position. 문제를 becomes 문제가.
3. Drop the doer. Korean usually leaves it out. If you must keep it, add 에게 or the formal 에 의해 (see the page on passive agent 에게 에 의해).
4. Swap 하다 for 되다. 해결했어요 becomes 해결됐어요.

Result: 문제가 해결됐어요.

You know it worked when the sentence has no 을/를 object and the verb ends in 되다. For a formal sentence, use 됩니다 or 되었습니다: 문제가 해결되었습니다 (munjega haegyeoldoeeotseumnida) [문제가 해결되얻씀니다] means "The problem has been solved." The next section compares -되다 with the other patterns.

How Is -되다 Different from 하다, 받다 and -아/어지다?

Each pattern fits a different situation. 하다 names the actor, 되다 describes a neutral result, 받다 and 당하다 mark something received or suffered, and -아/어지다 covers plain verbs with no 하다.

Two guidelines decide most cases. First, if the verb is built from a noun + 하다 and you want a neutral result, use 되다. Second, if the event is good or bad for the person, check the pages on -당하다 -받다 passive, because 사랑받다 ("be loved") and 사기당하다 ("be scammed") work differently. For plain verbs without 하다, see -아/어지다 become passive. For verbs with a fixed suffix pair, see passive suffixes 이 히 리 기.

If you are unsure whether a noun takes 하다 or 되다, the page hada vs doeda compares the two as vocabulary choices. The next section looks at the limits of -되다.

When Do You Use -되다, and When Not?

The -되다 pattern fits results, events and facts that hold for a thing. It does not fit actions that a person does on purpose, and it has a few look-alikes.

• Results and events. 시작되다 and 발견되다 both describe what happens to a thing. The sentence is about the thing, not the doer.
• Deliberate actions keep 하다. 저는 매일 한국어를 공부해요 ("I study Korean every day") needs 하다, because you are the one acting. 공부되다 would not say that.
• Not every 하다 verb has a partner. Many verbs of volition, such as 운동하다 ("exercise") and 요리하다 ("cook"), have no ordinary 되다 partner in this sense.
• A different 되다. 되다 on its own means "become" or "be ready": 의사가 됐어요 (uisaga dwaesseoyo) [의사가 돼써요] means "I became a doctor", and 밥이 다 됐어요 (bapi da dwaesseoyo) [바비 다 돼써요] means "The rice is ready." These are not passives of a 하다 verb.

This lesson covers the noun + 되다 pattern. It does not cover the 되다 of "become" in depth, and it does not list every 하다 verb in the dictionary. The mistakes below show where learners go wrong.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with -되다?

Learners most often get the spelling wrong or keep the object particle. Five mistakes appear again and again.

1. Writing 됬어요. This form does not exist. Write 됐어요 (the short form of 되었어요).
2. Writing 되요 for the polite present. 해결되요 is wrong. Write 해결돼요, because 되어요 contracts to 돼요.
3. Keeping 을/를 on the thing affected. 문제를 해결됐어요 is wrong. A 되다 verb takes no object: 문제가 해결됐어요.
4. Using 되다 for a deliberate action. 저는 숙제를 완성됐어요 is wrong. Say 저는 숙제를 완성했어요.
5. Stacking passives. 해결되어졌어요 adds -아/어지다 to a verb that is already passive. Grammar books call this a double passive (이중 피동), and careful writing avoids it. Write 해결됐어요.

A quick check helps: Is the thing affected marked with 이/가? Is the contraction spelled 돼 or 됐? Is the action something that happens to the thing, and not something you do on purpose? If all three answers are yes, the sentence is sound.

The practice set tests these points.

Practice and Answers

Try the four items before you read the answers.

1. Choose the form. Complete: 문제가 ___. (해결됐어요 / 해결했어요)
2. Fix the error. A learner writes 이 책은 한국어로 번역됬어요. Correct it.
3. Translate. "A new star was discovered." Use 별 and 발견되다.
4. Write your own. Write one sentence in the polite past that uses a 되다 verb from the table.

Answer key

1. 해결됐어요. The problem is the subject and receives the action, so the 되다 verb is needed.
2. 이 책은 한국어로 번역되었어요, or the short form 번역됐어요.
3. 새로운 별이 발견됐어요. (saeroun byeori balgyeondwaesseoyo.) [새로운 벼리 발견돼써요]
4. Answers vary. Check that the affected thing has 이/가, that there is no 을/를 object and that the contraction is spelled 됐어요. An example: 숙제가 완성됐어요 ("The homework is complete").

If you can complete items 1 to 3 without the key, you can use -되다 in conversation. The next section points to related lessons.

What Should You Learn Next after the -되다 Passive 하다 Verbs?

After the -되다 pattern, learn how to mark the doer and how to express good or bad experiences. This lesson teaches the neutral 되다 passive. It does not teach the 받다 and 당하다 passives, and it does not teach the suffix pairs.

1. Read -당하다 -받다 passive for things received or suffered.
2. Read passive agent 에게 에 의해 to add the doer.
3. Read passive suffixes 이 히 리 기 for pairs such as 잡히다.
4. Read -아/어지다 become passive for verbs with no suffix pair.
5. Learn how noun + 하다 verbs work in korean 하다 verbs noun + 하다.
6. Return to the full set of korean passive verbs.

With these steps, the pattern becomes automatic: swap 하다 for 되다, mark the affected thing with 이/가, and spell the ending 돼요 or 됐어요.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does -되다 mean in Korean?

-되다 turns a noun into a verb that means the thing is done, happens or is made. It is the passive or "it happens" partner of 하다 verbs: 해결하다 (solve) becomes 해결되다 (be solved). The thing that is affected is the subject and takes 이/가.

What is the difference between 하다 and 되다 with the same noun?

하다 has an actor who does the action and an object with 을/를: 문제를 해결했어요 (I solved the problem). 되다 describes the result with no actor in focus: 문제가 해결됐어요 (the problem was solved). Choose 하다 when the doer matters and 되다 when the result matters.

Is it 돼요 or 되요?

The correct spelling is 돼요. 돼 is the short form of 되어, so 되어요 becomes 돼요. A handy test: if you can replace the word with 해, write 돼, as in 해요 and 돼요. Write 되 when the ending does not start with 어, as in 되고, 되면 and 되는.

Is it 됐어요 or 됬어요?

Only 됐어요 is correct. It is the short form of 되었어요. The spelling 됬어요 does not exist in standard Korean, even though it is a very common typing error.

Can every 하다 verb become a 되다 verb?

No. Verbs where a person does something on purpose, such as 공부하다 (study) and 운동하다 (exercise), do not have an ordinary 되다 partner in this sense. The pairs that work are mostly Sino-Korean nouns for results and events, such as 해결, 번역, 사용, 시작, 발견 and 결정.

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