叫 jiào叫 jiào and 讓 ràng让 ràng do the same job as 被 bèi被 bèi — they flip the subject from doer to receiver of the action. But they’re more common in relaxed, spoken Chinese, and structurally they’re stricter:the object slot right after 叫 jiào叫 jiào/讓 ràng让 ràng is never optional.
1 叫 jiào叫 jiào/讓 ràng让 ràng vs. 被 bèi被 bèi
被 bèi被 bèi, 叫 jiào叫 jiào, and 讓 ràng让 ràng can all mark a passive sentence, but they aren’t identical:
Tone & Formality
被 bèi被 bèi tends to imply the result was negative or unexpected. 叫 jiào叫 jiào and 讓 ràng让 ràng simply mark the passive voice — the result can still be negative, but it isn’t built into the word itself the way it is with 被 bèi被 bèi.
被 bèi被 bèi also reads as more formal, while 叫 jiào叫 jiào and 讓 ràng让 ràng are casual and spoken.
Taiwan vs. Mainland Usage
叫 jiào叫 jiào and 讓 ràng让 ràng as passive markers are far more common in Mainland spoken Chinese. In Taiwan, they show up rarely in this role — 被 bèi被 bèi is the default choice.
2 Structure
Subject + 叫 jiào叫 jiào / 讓 ràng让 ràng + Object + Verb + Other Elements
The object — the doer of the action — can never be dropped here. This is the one hard rule that sets 叫 jiào叫 jiào/讓 ràng让 ràng apart from 被 bèi被 bèi, which allows the doer to be omitted.
我的詞典叫弟弟弄髒了我的词典叫弟弟弄脏了
My dictionary got dirty because of my brother.
我叫大公司錄取了我叫大公司录取了
I was hired by a big company!
我的人生讓你毀了我的人生让你毁了
My life is ruined by you!
妹妹讓老師罵了妹妹让老师骂了
My sister was scolded by the teacher.
A Note on “Other Elements”
Just like with 被 bèi被 bèi, something has to follow the verb — 了 le了 le, a complement, or another object. This part of the rule doesn’t change with 叫 jiào叫 jiào/讓 ràng让 ràng.
3 Negation and Adverbs
Just like 被 bèi被 bèi, negation words and adverbs always go before 叫 jiào叫 jiào / 讓 ràng让 ràng, never after.
他完全讓那小姐迷住了他完全让那姑娘迷住了
He was completely enchanted by the girl. (完全 wánquán完全 wánquán — the adverb — sits right before 讓 ràng让 ràng.)
作業沒讓妹妹寫完作业没让妹妹写完
The homework wasn’t finished by my sister. (沒 méi沒 méi goes before 讓 ràng让 ràng, same as with 被 bèi被 bèi.)
那本書已經叫他看完了那本书已经叫他看完了
That book has already been read by him.
手錶還沒叫我弄丟手表还没叫我弄丟
The watch hasn’t been lost by me yet. (還沒 háiméi还没 háiméi — “not yet” — also goes before 叫 jiào叫 jiào.)
4 Common Mistakes
❌
錢包叫偷走了钱包叫偷走了
✅
錢包叫小偷偷走了钱包叫小偷偷走了
The wallet was stolen by a thief. Unlike 被 bèi被 bèi, 叫 jiào叫 jiào and 讓 ràng让 ràng can never drop the doer — the object slot is mandatory.
❌
手機弄壞了叫我手机弄坏了叫我
✅
手機叫我弄壞了手机叫我弄坏了
The phone was broken by me. 叫 jiào叫 jiào sits directly before the doer and the verb — same position rule as 被 bèi被 bèi.
5 Practice
Translate each English sentence into a 叫 jiào叫 jiào/讓 ràng让 ràng sentence, then tap the card to check your answer.
01My brother broke the cup.
杯子叫弟弟打破了杯子叫弟弟打破了
The cup was broken by my brother.
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02The rain ruined our plan.
我們的計劃讓雨毀了我们的计划让雨毁了
Our plan was ruined by the rain.
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03Mom scolded my little brother.
弟弟叫媽媽罵了弟弟叫妈妈骂了
My little brother was scolded by mom.
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04The strong wind blew away my hat.
我的帽子讓大風吹走了我的帽子让大风吹走了
My hat was blown away by the strong wind.
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05A stranger took my seat.
我的位子叫一個陌生人佔了我的位子叫一个陌生人占了
My seat was taken by a stranger.
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06The manager fired him.
他讓經理開除了他让经理开除了
He was fired by the manager.
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07My son broke my phone.
我的手機叫我兒子弄壞了我的手机叫我儿子弄坏了
My phone was broken by my son.
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08That movie moved me deeply.
我讓那部電影感動了我让那部电影感动了
I was deeply moved by that movie.
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09The company promoted her.
她叫公司升職了她叫公司升职了
She was promoted by the company.
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10My roommate used up all my shampoo.
我的洗髮精叫室友用光了我的洗发水叫室友用光了
My shampoo was used up by my roommate.
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