The full causative-passive of a godan verb is a mouthful: 飲ませられる, 待たせられる, 行かせられる. Four and five syllables of stacked auxiliaries. So spoken Japanese does what spoken languages always do to overlong forms — it wears them down. 飲ませられる becomes 飲まされる; 待たせられる becomes 待たされる. This contracted form, 〜される, is not slang and not sloppy: it is the default causative-passive for godan verbs in conversation, and a learner who only knows the long form will sound stiff and textbook-bound. This page teaches the shortcut and, just as importantly, the single phonological rule that decides where it is allowed.
The contraction: せられ → され
The full godan causative-passive is [a-stem] + せられる. The contraction collapses the せられ into され:
| Verb | Full causative-passive | Contracted 〜される |
|---|---|---|
| 飲む (drink) | 飲ませられる | 飲まされる |
| 待つ (wait) | 待たせられる | 待たされる |
| 行く (go) | 行かせられる | 行かされる |
| 買う (buy) | 買わせられる | 買わされる |
| 読む (read) | 読ませられる | 読まされる |
| 書く (write) | 書かせられる | 書かされる |
| 立つ (stand) | 立たせられる | 立たされる |
Mechanically: the causative morpheme せ plus the passive られ (せられ) fuses into a single され. The a-stem in front is untouched (飲ま-, 待た-, 行か-), so all you do is chop せられ off the end and glue され on. Both forms mean exactly the same thing — "was made to" — and both carry the same nuance of reluctance. Nothing semantic is lost; only length.
飲みたくなかったのに、無理やり飲まされた。
nomitakunakatta noni, muriyari nomasareta
I didn't want to drink, but they forced it on me.
レストランで一時間も待たされた。
resutoran de ichi-jikan mo matasareta
I was kept waiting a whole hour at the restaurant.
店員にすすめられて、いらない物まで買わされた。
ten'in ni susumerarete, iranai mono made kawasareta
The salesclerk talked me into it, and I ended up being made to buy things I didn't even need.
The one blocker: す-final verbs do not contract
Here is the rule that separates a fluent speaker from someone parroting a shortcut. The contraction is blocked whenever it would produce the sequence さされ. That happens with exactly one group: godan verbs ending in す (話す, 貸す, 出す, 直す, 消す), whose a-stem already ends in さ.
Watch what would go wrong. 話す → causative 話させる → causative-passive 話させられる. If you tried to contract せられ → され, you would get 話さ + される = 話さされる — a さ immediately followed by される, i.e. the forbidden さされ. Japanese refuses it. So す-verbs keep the full 〜させられる with no short form.
| す-verb | Full (the only correct form) | Contraction — impossible |
|---|---|---|
| 話す (speak) | 話させられる | ✗ 話さされる |
| 貸す (lend) | 貸させられる | ✗ 貸さされる |
| 出す (put out) | 出させられる | ✗ 出さされる |
| 直す (fix) | 直させられる | ✗ 直さされる |
みんなの前で、無理やり本音を話させられた。
minna no mae de, muriyari honne o hanasaserareta
In front of everyone, I was forced to reveal my true feelings.
Note 話させられた, not ×話さされた. The whole reason 待たされる is possible but 話さされる is not comes down to that one phonological accident: 待つ's a-stem is 待た (ends in た, so 待た+される is clean), while 話す's a-stem is 話さ (ends in さ, so contraction would double it). Remembering "contract せられ→され, unless the result is さされ" gets you every case.
The other blocker: ichidan verbs have no short form at all
The contraction is a godan-only phenomenon. Ichidan (ru-) verbs and the two irregulars form their causative-passive with させられる — 食べさせられる, 覚えさせられる, させられる, 来（こ）させられる — and that is the end of the road. There is no 〜される shortcut for them; ×食べさされる does not exist.
子供の頃、嫌いな野菜を食べさせられた。
kodomo no koro, kirai na yasai o tabesaserareta
As a child, I was made to eat vegetables I hated.
So the landscape is clean once you sort verbs into three bins: godan non-す contracts (待たされる), godan す does not (話させられる), ichidan/irregular does not (食べさせられる).
Why bother learning both forms?
Because you will hear the contraction constantly and read the full form in careful writing. In casual conversation, using 飲ませられた where everyone else says 飲まされた is not wrong, but it marks you as a learner. Conversely, in a formal essay or a polite complaint letter, the fuller 飲ませられました can read as more composed. The contracted form also carries a slightly more colloquial, more emotionally charged feel — fitting, given the reluctance the causative-passive already encodes.
部長に、行きたくもない出張に行かされた。
buchō ni, ikitaku mo nai shutchō ni ikasareta
My department head sent me on a business trip I didn't even want to go on.
子供の頃、廊下に立たされたことがある。
kodomo no koro, rōka ni tatasareta koto ga aru
When I was a kid, I once got made to stand out in the hallway (as punishment).
Common mistakes
❌ みんなの前で歌わされたくなくて、話さされた。
minna no mae de utawasaretakunakute, hanasasareta
Incorrect — 話す is a す-verb, so it cannot contract. The form is 話させられた.
✅ みんなの前で歌わされたくなくて、話させられた。
minna no mae de utawasaretakunakute, hanasaserareta
I didn't want to be made to sing in front of everyone, so I was made to talk instead.
❌ 嫌いな野菜を食べさされた。
kirai na yasai o tabesasareta
Incorrect — 食べる is ichidan, which has no contracted form. Use 食べさせられた.
✅ 嫌いな野菜を食べさせられた。
kirai na yasai o tabesaserareta
I was made to eat vegetables I hate.
❌ 一時間も待たされられた。
ichi-jikan mo matasarerareta
Double-conjugated — don't contract AND keep られる. It's either 待たせられた (full) or 待たされた (contracted), never both.
✅ 一時間も待たされた。
ichi-jikan mo matasareta
I was kept waiting a whole hour.
❌ 店員に高い物を買われた。
ten'in ni takai mono o kawareta
Wrong voice — 買われた is the plain passive 'was bought (from me)'. To say you were made to buy, you need the extra さ: 買わされた.
✅ 店員に高い物を買わされた。
ten'in ni takai mono o kawasareta
The clerk made me buy something expensive.
Key takeaways
- Godan 〜せられる contracts to 〜される in speech: 飲ませられる → 飲まされる, 待たせられる → 待たされる. Meaning is identical; only length changes.
- The contraction is blocked for す-verbs (話す, 貸す, 出す) because it would create the forbidden さされ — they keep 〜させられる.
- Ichidan and irregular verbs never contract (食べさせられる has no short form).
- Test a godan verb by its ない-stem: ends in さ → no contraction; ends in anything else → contract freely.
- The extra さ is everything: 買われた "was bought" vs 買わされた "was made to buy."
Now practice Japanese
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Start learning Japanese→Related Topics
- Causative-Passive 〜させられる: Forced ToN3 — The causative-passive — stacking causative onto passive to say you were made to do something against your will, who takes に, and the built-in nuance of reluctance.
- The Causative 使役: させる / せるN4 — How to build the causative — させる for ru-verbs, the -a stem plus せる for u-verbs, させる / 来させる for the irregulars — and how the causer and causee are marked.
- The Passive 受身: FormationN4 — How to build the Japanese passive れる／られる across all verb classes, why the doer is marked に (not 'by'), and why れる／られる looks identical to the potential and the honorific.