Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan.

Được is commonly used to mark the passive voice in Vietnamese.

So in Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan, the thing receiving the action is bưu kiện and the action is gửi. This is similar to English The package was sent by Lan.

A very simple pattern is:

noun + được + verb + bởi + person

In many cases, được can also suggest that the result is neutral or favorable, but here its main job is to help form the passive structure.

No. Được has several uses in Vietnamese.

In other sentences, it can mean things like:

• to get / receive
• can / be allowed to
• a marker of passive voice

In Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan, it is not acting like to get in the everyday sense. It is functioning as a passive marker.

So here, you should understand it grammatically, not lexically.

Bởi means by and introduces the agent of the action, meaning the person who does it.

So:

• bởi Lan = by Lan

This is the passive equivalent of saying Lan is the sender.

In everyday Vietnamese, bởi is correct but can sound a bit more formal or written. People may also use:

• do Lan gửi
• or just avoid the passive altogether and say an active sentence instead.

It is grammatical and understandable, but it can sound a bit formal or written, especially because of được ... bởi ....

In natural everyday speech, Vietnamese often prefers the active voice, for example:

• Lan gửi bưu kiện.

If you want to keep the passive idea, people might also say:

• Bưu kiện do Lan gửi.

So the given sentence is fine, but it is not always the most conversational option.

Vietnamese usually follows a basic order similar to:

subject/topic + verb + other information

In this sentence:

• Bưu kiện = the package
• được gửi = was sent
• bởi Lan = by Lan

So the structure is very close to English passive word order:

• The package / was sent / by Lan

The main difference is that Vietnamese does not change the verb form for tense the way English does. Instead, it uses separate words like được, time expressions, or context.

No. Vietnamese verbs do not conjugate like English verbs.

Gửi stays gửi whether the action happened in the past, present, or future. Time is usually shown by:

• context
• time words such as hôm qua, ngày mai, đã, sẽ
• sentence structure

So in Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan, the idea of was sent comes from the passive structure and context, not from changing gửi into a past form.

Yes.

You can say:

Bưu kiện được gửi.

That means The package was sent or The package has been sent, depending on context.

If the person who did the action is not important, unknown, or obvious, Vietnamese often leaves that part out. This is very common.

Both can refer to a package or parcel, but there is a slight difference in feel.

• bưu kiện is a bit more formal and specifically connected with postal/shipping language
• gói hàng is more everyday and general

So bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan sounds somewhat formal, like something you might see in writing, logistics, or official communication.

Usually no, not in the normal neutral sense.

Vietnamese often contrasts:

• được for neutral or favorable passive situations
• bị for negative or unwanted passive situations

So:

• Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan = neutral, normal
• bị gửi might suggest something undesirable or odd, depending on context

For an ordinary sentence about sending a package, được gửi is the better choice.

Yes, and that is often more natural.

Bưu kiện do Lan gửi also means The package was sent by Lan or The package is the one Lan sent depending on context.

Compared with được gửi bởi Lan:

• do Lan gửi often sounds smoother and more natural
• được gửi bởi Lan sounds more explicitly passive and a bit more formal

Both are correct, but they are not always used in exactly the same style.

A learner may find this word tricky because of both the vowel combination and the tones.

Break it into two parts:

• bưu
• kiện

Important points:

• bưu has the level tone here
• kiện has the nặng tone, so it is short and heavy-falling with a glottalized feel in many accents

Also, kiện begins with k, which is pronounced like an unaspirated k sound before the following vowel.

If you want to sound natural, it helps to practice the whole phrase rhythmically:

Bưu kiện / được gửi / bởi Lan

Yes. The sentence is being presented in a passive way because the focus is on bưu kiện, the thing affected by the action, rather than on Lan, the person doing the action.

Compare:

• Lan gửi bưu kiện. = active
• Bưu kiện được gửi bởi Lan. = passive

This is one of the clearest passive patterns in Vietnamese.