The Passive Sentence (5) – 被字句(5)

The Passive Sentence (5) – 被字句(5

In Chinese, a sentence with “被” can express the passive sentence voice, its normal structure is “Subject + 被 + O + V + Other Elements”, in which the subject is the patient of the action and the object the agent.

There are other two “被” structures for advanced learners:

 

  1. Subject + + Object + + Verb

This structure is still used to indicate passive voice. “所” is an auxiliary word after which is followed by a verb. The verb which is used after “所” cannot be used with other elements.

e.g.

我们都眼前的美景吸引。(Wǒmen dōu bèi yǎnqián dì měijǐng suǒ xīyǐn.)  We were all captivated by the beauty in front of us.

好奇心(所)驱使,鼓起勇气决定下到洞底一探究竟。(Tā bèi hàoqí xīn (suǒ) qūshǐ, gǔ qǐ yǒngqì juédìng xià dào dòng dǐ yī tàn jiùjìng.)Driven by curiosity, he summoned the courage to go down to the bottom of the cave to find out.

 

Note: “所” can be omitted before disyllabic verbs, but it cannot be omitted before monosyllabic verbs which contain strong literature color.

整支队伍风雪阻。(Zhěng zhī duìwǔ bèi fēng xuě suǒ zǔ.) The entire team was blocked by the wind and snow.

年轻男女总是困。(Niánqīng nánnǚ zǒng shì bèi qíng suǒ kùn.) Young men and women are always trapped in love.

 

  1. Subject + + Object + + Verb

This structure also is used to indicate passive voice. “为” implies passive meaning which is usually used in ancient Chinese. And this structure usually is used in written form.

e.g.

别叹气,成年人总是会生活累。(Bié tànqì, chéngnián rén zǒng shì huì wéi shēnghuó suǒ lèi.) Don’t sigh, adults are always tired of life.

你总是那么容易相信人,时常表面现象蒙蔽。(Nǐ zǒng shì nàme róngyì xiāngxìn rén, shícháng wèi biǎomiàn xiànxiàng suǒ méngbì.) You are always so easy to trust people and are often deceived by appearances.

“改革开放”政策的正确性已实践证明。(“Gǎigé kāifàng” zhèngcè de zhèngquè xìng yǐ wèi shíjiàn suǒ zhèngmíng.) The correctness of the “reform and opening up” policy has been proved by practice.

 

Note that“为” and “被” are interchangeable here, and the meaning won’t change.

1. 这部电影太真实了,我们 ___ 。(Zhèbù diànyǐng tài zhēnshí le, wǒmen ___ .)
A.
B.
C.
D.
2. 他整个人都被心底的恐惧所支配(dominate) ___ 。(Tā zhěnggèrén dōu bèi xīndǐ de kǒngjù suǒ zhīpèi ___ .)
A.
B.
C.
D.
3. 多少人为生活 ___ 累,为生活奔波(be busy running about)。(Duōshǎorén wéi shēnghuó ___ lěi, wèi shēnghuó bēnbō.)
A.
B.
C.
D.
4. 他 ___ 生活所迫,不得不辍学(Drop out of school)去打工。(Tā ___ shēnghuó suǒ pò, bùdébù chuòxué qù dǎgōng.)
A.
B.
C.
D.
5. 那些为了祖国人民牺牲(sacrifice)的英雄们永远不会被人们 ___ 忘记。(Nàxiē wèi le zǔguó rénmín xīshēng de yīngxióngmen yǒngyuǎn búhuì bèi rénmen ___ wàngjì.)
A.
B.
C.

 

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