The 被 overview introduced the idea; this page dissects the skeleton slot by slot, because 被 sentences fall apart in exactly predictable places. The pattern is Subject(patient) + 被 + (Agent) + Verb + completing element, and two of those slots trip up almost every English speaker: the agent lands between 被 and the verb (not after the verb, where English puts "by him"), and the verb can never stand bare — it must be finished off with a result, a complement, or 了, precisely the requirement you already met with 把. Get the anatomy right once and the whole construction becomes mechanical.
The five slots, in order
Think of a 被 sentence as five slots that must be filled left to right. The clearest test case is a broken phone:
| Slot | Example | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Subject (patient) | 我的手机 | the definite thing that was affected |
| 被 | 被 | the passive marker |
| Agent | 弟弟 | the doer — optional, but if present it sits here |
| Verb | 摔 | the action |
| Complement / 了 | 坏了 | the outcome — mandatory |
我的手机被弟弟摔坏了。
wǒ de shǒujī bèi dìdi shuāi huài le
My phone got dropped and broken by my little brother. (informal) — all five slots filled in order.
小偷被警察抓住了。
xiǎotōu bèi jǐngchá zhuā zhù le
The thief was caught by the police. (neutral) — agent 警察 between 被 and the verb; result 抓住了.
蛋糕被孩子们吃光了。
dàngāo bèi háizimen chī guāng le
The cake was all eaten up by the kids. (informal) — 光 (finished off) is the completing element.
The word order is the first thing to burn in. English says "the cake was eaten by the kids," placing the agent at the very end. Chinese places the agent immediately after 被, before the verb even appears. There is no version where the doer follows the verb.
那封信被秘书误删了。
nà fēng xìn bèi mìshū wù shān le
That letter was deleted by mistake by the secretary. (neutral) — agent 秘书 sits inside, before 误删了.
The verb is never bare — it needs an outcome
This is the single hardest habit to build, because English is happy with "the cup was broken" — a bare participle. In Chinese, 被 reports that something reached a state, so the verb has to show that state. A plain verb leaves the sentence hanging:
❌ 杯子被他打。
Incomplete — 被 needs the outcome spelled out; 打 alone just means 'hit', not 'broken'.
✅ 杯子被他打破了。
bēizi bèi tā dǎ pò le
The cup was broken by him. (neutral) — 破 (broken) completes 打.
The completing element can be a resultative complement (打破, 抓住, 吃光), a directional complement (拿走, 吹倒), or simply 了 carrying an implied result:
门被风吹开了。
mén bèi fēng chuī kāi le
The door was blown open by the wind. (neutral) — even a non-human agent (风) is fine; 开 completes 吹.
我的座位被别人占了。
wǒ de zuòwèi bèi biéren zhàn le
My seat got taken by someone else. (informal) — 占了 (occupied) carries the result.
The subject must be definite — and it must be the patient
The thing in front of 被 is the affected party, and it is definite — a specific, already-known item (my phone, that letter, the cup), not "a phone" pulled out of nowhere. This mirrors 把, whose object is also definite. Naming the wrong participant as subject flips the whole meaning:
他的建议被大家接受了。
tā de jiànyì bèi dàjiā jiēshòu le
His suggestion was accepted by everyone. (neutral) — 建议 is the definite patient; 大家 is the agent.
那幅画被博物馆收藏了。
nà fú huà bèi bówùguǎn shōucáng le
That painting was acquired by the museum. (neutral)
The mirror-image relationship with 把 is worth holding in view: the same event, 他打破了杯子, becomes 他把杯子打破了 (agent in charge) or 杯子被他打破了 (patient in charge). Both weld the verb to its outcome; both demote the other participant. The 把/被 mirror page works through that symmetry in full.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving the verb bare after 被. The verb must carry a result, complement, or 了.
❌ 我的自行车被偷。
Incomplete — the outcome is missing; add 了 or a complement.
✅ 我的自行车被偷了。
wǒ de zìxíngchē bèi tōu le
My bike was stolen. (neutral)
2. Putting the agent after the verb, English-style. The doer goes between 被 and the verb, never after it.
❌ 杯子被打破了他。
Incorrect — the agent can't follow the verb; it belongs right after 被.
✅ 杯子被他打破了。
bēizi bèi tā dǎ pò le
The cup was broken by him. (neutral)
3. Making the agent the subject by mistake. The subject must be the thing affected, or the meaning reverses.
❌ 他被杯子打破了。
Reversed — this says 'he was broken by the cup'; you meant 杯子被他打破了.
✅ 杯子被他打破了。
bēizi bèi tā dǎ pò le
The cup was broken by him. (neutral) — the patient 杯子 is the subject.
Key Takeaways
- The skeleton is Subject(patient) + 被 + (Agent) + Verb + completing element, filled left to right.
- The agent sits between 被 and the verb — never after the verb, where English puts "by him."
- The verb is never bare: it needs a resultative complement, directional complement, or 了 showing the outcome.
- The subject is the definite, affected party — name the patient, not the doer, or the sentence reverses.
- 被 is the passive mirror of 把: same event, opposite subject, same demand for a completed verb.
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- The 被 PassiveHSK 3 — 被 (bèi) marks the subject as the affected party — the thing something was done TO: 杯子被他打破了 'the cup was broken by him', 我的自行车被偷了 'my bike was stolen'. It needs a completing element like 把 does, carries a flavour of adversity, and is used far less than the English passive.
- Agentless 被: When the Doer Is UnknownHSK 3 — When the doer is unknown, obvious, or beside the point, drop the agent and put 被 straight before the verb: 钱包被偷了 'the wallet was stolen', 门被关上了 'the door got closed'. This is the closest Chinese comes to the English agentless passive.
- 把 vs 被: The Disposal MirrorHSK 4 — 把 and 被 tell the same event from opposite ends: 他把杯子打破了 'he broke the cup' (the doer's side) mirrors 杯子被他打破了 'the cup was broken by him' (the affected thing's side). Choose your subject first — doer takes 把, affected thing takes 被.
- Resultative Complements 结果补语HSK 2 — A resultative complement 结果补语 welds a second verb or adjective onto the main verb to name the result it achieves — 吃完 (eat up), 听懂 (understand), 看见 (see), 洗干净 (wash clean) — negated with 没, never 不.