N3#verbs#causative#passive#n3-grammar

Passive & Causative Lesson 2

Mastering the Causative-Passive (使役受身) form, used to express when someone is forced or coerced into doing an action against their will.

Context

Feeling Coerced

Have you ever been asked to do something you really didn't want to do, like staying late for overtime or cleaning up a mess you didn't make? In Japanese, there is a specific verb form that captures this feeling of being forced into an action.

When you want to emphasize that you were made to do something against your will, or that you were forced to perform an action by someone else, you use the Causative-Passive form (使役受身 - shieki ukemi). It combines the causative (making someone do something) and the passive (being acted upon).

Explanation

The Causative-Passive Formula

The causative-passive form is created by taking the causative form of a verb and conjugating it into the passive form.

Verbさせられる

For Godan verbs, the causative is 'aseru' (e.g., iku -> ikaseru). To make it causative-passive, you change the final 'ru' to 'rareru', resulting in 'ikaserareru'. For Ichidan verbs, you add 'saserareru' to the stem (e.g., taberu -> tabesaserareru).

Watch out

Note that for many verbs, this form becomes quite long and cumbersome. In casual speech, people often shorten 'saserareru' to 'sasareru' (e.g., ikasaserareru -> ikasareru), though this is technically non-standard.

Examples

Seeing it in Action

Here are examples of the causative-passive form describing reluctant actions.

私(わたし)は母(はは)に野菜(やさい)を食べさせられた(たべさせられた)。

I was made to eat vegetables by my mother.

私わたしI母ははmother野菜やさいvegetables食べさせられたたべさせられたwas made to eat

部長(ぶちょう)に残業(ざんぎょう)させられた。

I was made to work overtime by the manager.

部長ぶちょうmanager残業ざんぎょうovertimeさせられたさせられたwas made to do

先生に長い作文を【書かされた】。

Hint: Causative-passive of 書く (kaku)

I was made to write a long essay by the teacher.

Usage

Nuance and Register

The causative-passive is inherently negative. It implies that the speaker had no choice in the matter.

Causative vs Causative-Passive

食べさせる

To make someone eat (neutral/causative)

食べさせられる

To be made to eat (reluctant/passive)

What is the primary nuance of the causative-passive form?

Polite request
Voluntary action
✓ Reluctance or being forced
Giving permission

The causative-passive is used specifically to express that an action was performed against one's will.

Deep dive

The 'Suru' Exception

The verb 'suru' (to do) has a unique causative-passive form.

Instead of 'suserareru', the causative-passive of 'suru' is 'saserareru'. This is a common point of confusion for learners. Additionally, the verb 'kuru' (to come) becomes 'kosaserareru'.

Summary

Lesson Recap

The causative-passive form (させられる) is essential for expressing that you were coerced into an action. Remember that it carries a strong nuance of dissatisfaction or lack of agency.

使役

しえきnoun

causative

受身

うけみnoun

passive

残業

ざんぎょうnoun

overtime work

作文

さくぶんnoun

essay/composition