Passive with omitted actor

Level 3

The agentless passive focuses on what happened rather than who did it. It is formed by adding the prefix di- to a verb base and removing the actor entirely, or by using ter- for accidental events.

How It Works

The agentless passive (ayat pasif tanpa pelaku) is a cornerstone of Malay syntax. It allows speakers to highlight the object or the action itself.

1. Formation:
To form this, take a transitive verb base and attach the di- prefix. If the verb originally had a meN- prefix, that prefix must be removed, but any suffixes like -kan or -i must be kept.

  • memasukkan (to put in) → dimasukkan (is put in)
  • menghargai (to appreciate) → dihargai (is appreciated)

2. When to use it:

  • Unknown Actor: When you don't know who did the action.
  • General Truths: When the action is done by people in general.
  • Formal/Public Notices: To sound objective or official.
  • Politeness: To avoid blaming someone directly by focusing on the result.

3. The Actor Rule:
In standard Malay, the di- prefix is only restricted to third-person contexts when the actor is explicitly mentioned (e.g., oleh beliau). However, for agentless sentences where the actor is completely hidden, di- is the universal standard used for all persons.

4. Accidental Passive:
If the agentless action was unintentional or accidental, the ter- prefix is used instead of di-. For example, pintu itu terbuka (the door was opened accidentally) versus pintu itu dibuka (the door was opened intentionally).

Examples (4)

  1. Jalan ditutup untuk perarakan.

    The road is closed for the parade.

    Word by Word: Road is-closed for parade.

    The focus is on the state of the road. The 'authorities' who closed it are obvious and thus omitted.

  2. Pencuri itu telah ditangkap.

    The thief has been caught.

    Word by Word: Thief that already is-caught.

    Common in news reporting where the action (the arrest) is more important than naming the specific officers.

  3. Buku itu sudah dipulangkan.

    That book has already been returned.

    Word by Word: Book that already is-returned.

    Used in daily conversation to confirm the status of an object without needing to specify who returned it.

  4. Pintu itu dikunci setiap malam.

    That door is locked every night.

    Word by Word: Door that is-locked every night.

    Describes a routine action where the specific person locking the door is not the focus.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'di-' when the actor is named as 'I' or 'you'.

    Buku itu dibaca saya.
    Buku itu saya baca.

    When the actor is named and is 'I' or 'you', the verb loses its prefix: saya baca, kamu baca. Use 'di-' when the actor is a third person, or when no actor is named: Buku itu dibaca.

  • Removing suffixes like '-kan' or '-i' when forming the passive.

    Sampah itu dihapus.
    Sampah itu dihapuskan.

    When changing a verb to the passive form, you only replace the meN- prefix with 'di-'. Any suffixes like -kan or -i must be retained.

  • Keeping the active 'meN- prefix' while trying to make it passive.

    Sampah itu dimembuang.
    Sampah itu dibuang.

    You must remove the active prefix (meN-) before adding the passive prefix (di-).

How It Connects

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

Passive with omitted actorLevel 3

Learn This First

To understand the agentless passive, you must first be familiar with the basic di- passive prefix and how Malay sentences are structured. It is also helpful to know how agents are normally expressed with 'oleh' so you can recognize when they have been intentionally left out.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

di-