Third-person passive preference

Level 3

The di- passive makes the affected participant the subject. This lesson practices the common third-person-agent model, such as Buku itu dibaca Budi.

How It Works

The di- passive (often called Passive Type 1) is used to make the affected participant the subject. Unlike the active meN- prefix, the di- prefix is stable and never changes its spelling based on the root word.

1. Structure:
The basic structure is: [Affected Subject] + [di-Verb] + [Actor].
Example: Buku itu dibaca Budi (That book was read by Budi).

2. Marking the Actor:
There are three ways to indicate the third-person actor after the verb:

  • Directly after the verb: dimakan kucing (eaten by the cat).
  • Using the suffix -nya: dimakannya (eaten by him/her/it).
  • Using the preposition 'oleh': dimakan oleh kucing (eaten by the cat).

3. When to use 'oleh':
The word oleh (by) is optional if the actor immediately follows the verb. However, in the standard model it is required if there is an adverb (like 'yesterday' or 'quickly') between the verb and the actor.

4. Register:
This form is used in all levels of Indonesian, from casual conversation to formal news reports. It is often preferred over the active voice when the object is the main topic of the conversation.

Other Persons and Agent Omission: Buku itu saya baca is a useful standard object-voice model for I as actor. Buku itu dibaca oleh saya is nevertheless attested, and TBBI itself includes a coordinated oleh kamu dan saya agent. Contemporary corpus research documents further first- and second-person examples. Di- also permits omitting the agent; it does not by itself encode the agent’s person or intention.

Examples (5)

  1. Apel itu dimakan olehnya.

    The apple was eaten by him/her.

    Word by Word: Apple that be-eaten by-him/her.

    Here, the prefix 'di-' is attached to 'makan' (eat), and the actor is represented by the suffix '-nya' attached to 'oleh'.

  2. Surat ini sudah dikirim Budi.

    This letter has already been sent by Budi.

    Word by Word: Letter this already be-sent Budi.

    In this sentence, the actor 'Budi' follows the passive verb 'dikirim' directly without the need for 'oleh'.

  3. Pencuri itu akhirnya ditangkap polisi.

    The thief was finally caught by the police.

    Word by Word: Thief that finally be-caught police.

    A common use of the passive in news reporting where the focus is on the person affected by the action.

  4. Buku itu sedang dibaca oleh mereka di perpustakaan.

    That book is being read by them in the library.

    Word by Word: Book that [progressive] be-read by them at library.

    Demonstrates the use of 'oleh' with the third-person plural pronoun 'mereka'.

  5. Mobil itu diperbaiki kemarin oleh montir.

    That car was repaired yesterday by the mechanic.

    Word by Word: Car that be-repaired yesterday by mechanic.

    In the standard model, kemarin separates the verb from the agent, so oleh introduces montir.

Common Mistakes

  • Confusing the passive prefix di- with the location preposition di.

    Nasi itu di makan Budi.
    Nasi itu dimakan Budi.

    The passive prefix 'di-' must be attached to the verb without a space. The preposition 'di' (at/in) is written with a space before a location. See di- vs di spacing.

  • Omitting 'oleh' when an adverb separates the verb and the actor.

    Buku itu dibaca kemarin dia.
    Buku itu dibaca kemarin oleh dia.

    In this standard model, an intervening adverb separates the verb from its agent, so introduce the agent with oleh.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Third-person passive preferenceLevel 3

Learn This First

To understand the preference for the third-person di- passive, learners must first be familiar with the basic di- passive prefix and how agents are marked, either through the preposition 'oleh' or the third-person enclitic '-nya'.

Words in This Pattern

di-