Passive Alternatives in Chinese

Overview

Beyond 被 (bèi), Chinese has several other ways to express passive meaning. 叫 (jiào) and 让 (ràng) function as colloquial passive markers, often with a negative connotation. 给 (gěi) serves as a dialectal passive marker. More formally, 受到 (shòudào, receive) and 遭到 (zāodào, suffer) express passive reception. Additionally, many Chinese sentences use "notional passive" -- passive meaning without any marker.

At the CEFR B2 level, understanding these alternatives is important for both comprehension and natural expression. In everyday speech, 叫 and 让 passives are actually more common than 被 in some dialects and registers. Notional passive (zero-marker passive) is the most natural form in many contexts.

How It Works

Marker	Register	Connotation	Example
被	standard	often negative	被批评了 (was criticized)
叫	colloquial	negative	叫他花光了 (was spent by him)
让	colloquial	negative/neutral	让雨淋了 (got rained on)
给	dialectal	negative	给人偷了 (was stolen)
受到	formal	positive/neutral	受到欢迎 (was welcomed)
遭到	formal	negative	遭到反对 (met with opposition)
(none)	all	neutral	问题解决了 (problem was solved)

Notional passive (no marker)

The subject is understood as being acted upon from context:

Chinese	Meaning	Why no marker needed
饭做好了。	The food is ready.	Food is clearly what was made
信寄出去了。	The letter was sent.	Letter is clearly what was sent
问题解决了。	The problem was solved.	Problem is clearly what was solved

Examples in Context

Chinese	Pinyin	English	Note
钱叫他花光了。	Qián jiào tā huā guāng le.	The money was spent by him.	叫 passive
车让人偷了。	Chē ràng rén tōu le.	The car was stolen.	让 passive
受到欢迎	shòudào huānyíng	to be welcomed	formal positive
遭到批评	zāodào pīpíng	to be criticized	formal negative
问题解决了。	Wèntí jiějué le.	The problem was solved.	notional passive
饭做好了。	Fàn zuò hǎo le.	The food is ready.	notional passive
衣服洗干净了。	Yīfú xǐ gānjìng le.	The clothes are washed clean.	notional passive
他给蚊子咬了。	Tā gěi wénzi yǎo le.	He was bitten by mosquitoes.	给 passive
这件事受到了关注。	Zhè jiàn shì shòudào le guānzhù.	This matter received attention.	formal
他的建议遭到了拒绝。	Tā de jiànyì zāodào le jùjué.	His proposal was rejected.	formal negative

Common Mistakes

Using 被 in every passive sentence

• Wrong: 饭被做好了。(overly marked)
• Right: 饭做好了。(notional passive, more natural)
• Why: Chinese strongly prefers notional passive or active voice. 被 is used mainly when the agent matters or the situation is notable.

Missing the negative connotation of 叫/让 passives

• Wrong: Using 叫 for positive events
• Right: 叫/让 passives typically describe unfortunate situations
• Why: These colloquial markers carry a sense of "being subjected to" something undesirable.

Confusing 受到 and 遭到

• Wrong: 遭到欢迎 (suffer welcome?)
• Right: 受到欢迎 (receive welcome) / 遭到批评 (suffer criticism)
• Why: 受到 is neutral-to-positive; 遭到 is strictly negative.

Practice Tips

• Practice notional passive with common household sentences: 饭做好了, 衣服洗了, 房间打扫了. These are the most natural in daily life.
• Learn 受到 and 遭到 as formal vocabulary for reading news and academic texts.
• Listen for 叫 and 让 in conversations and TV shows to build familiarity with colloquial passives.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: 被 Passive -- learn the standard passive before alternatives