被 + (Agent) + Verb
Reach for 被 when you want to put the receiver of an action up front and let the doer fade — or disappear. It's Mandarin's main passive marker and shows up everywhere from news headlines ('the building was burned') to formal writing and complaint speech ('I got scolded'). The agent (who did it) goes between 被 and the verb, but you can omit it entirely when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious. Modern Chinese also uses 被 freely for neutral facts, not just unfortunate events.
Structure
[RECEIVER] 被 ([AGENT]) [VERB] [RESULT/COMPLEMENT]
bèi ([AGENT]) [VERB]...
How to Think About It
被 flips the camera onto the receiver. The verb in a 被 sentence almost always needs a result, complement, or 了 attached — bare verbs sound incomplete, because passive sentences in Chinese describe what happened TO something, and that requires a stated effect. If you can drop the agent without losing meaning, drop it; over-specifying the doer makes the sentence sound like a translated English passive rather than natural Chinese.
Examples
他的自行车被偷了。
Tā de zìxíngchē bèi tōu le.
His bike was stolen.
那本书被妹妹拿走了。
Nà běn shū bèi mèimei ná zǒu le.
That book was taken away by little sister.
这座桥被洪水冲毁了。
Zhè zuò qiáo bèi hóngshuǐ chōnghuǐ le.
This bridge was destroyed by the flood.
Common Mistake
Learners write 被-sentences with a bare verb ('被打') and no result, copying English 'was hit.' Chinese expects the verb to carry a result, 了, or a directional complement, otherwise the listener feels the sentence has been cut off.
鲸鱼被炸。
鲸鱼被炸成了无数块。
Don't Confuse With
把 + Object + Verb + Result
Use 把 when you want to spotlight the AGENT doing something to the object. 被 spotlights the OBJECT receiving the action.
让 / 叫 + Agent + Verb
Use 让/叫 for colloquial passive, often with a tone of complaint ('my bike got stolen by someone'). 被 is the neutral, register-flexible default.
受到 + Noun (e.g. 受到欢迎)
Use 受到 with abstract nouns like 影响、欢迎、批评. 被 takes a verb phrase; 受到 takes a noun.
Practice
Fill in the blank: 我的手机 ___ 弟弟弄坏了。
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被
Fill in the blank: 那封信被风 ___ 走了。 (blown)
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吹
Arrange: 蛋糕 / 被 / 吃 / 完了 / 孩子们
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蛋糕被孩子们吃完了。
Translate: The window was broken by the wind.
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窗户被风打破了。
Write one sentence about something that got fixed or broken using 被.
Show answer
我的电脑被工程师修好了。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 3 Fluentide episodes: