把-Sentences & Notional Passive
The 把 construction moves a known object before the verb to show what is done to it, and at HSK 5 it is set against the notional passive. A notional passive makes the receiver the subject with no 被, as in 衣服洗干净了.
Compare three forms describing the same event:
把: 他把衣服洗干净了。(agent-focus: marks the definite object)
被: 衣服被他洗干净了。(explicit passive marker, patient as subject)
意念被动: 衣服洗干净了。(no marker at all; natural when the agent is unimportant/obvious)
Key structural rule: once the patient is already the sentence's subject/topic, 把 cannot be inserted afterward — 把 requires an object slot that comes right after it, and none is left.
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 信写好了，可以寄出去了。 | Xìn xiě hǎo le, kě yǐ jì chū qù le. | The letter is written, it can be mailed now. | Notional passive: 信 (patient) is the subject, no marker needed. |
| 门开着，你可以直接进来。 | Mén kāi zhe, nǐ kě yǐ zhí jiē jìn lái. | The door is open, you can come straight in. | Notional passive with a stative result (开着), still no marker. |
| 那本书卖完了，书店里买不到了。 | Nà běn shū mài wán le, shū diàn lǐ mǎi bú dào le. | That book is sold out, you can't buy it at the bookstore anymore. | Another notional passive: 那本书 (patient) as subject, agent (customers/store) irrelevant. |
| 他不小心把杯子打破了；杯子被他不小心打破了；杯子打破了。 | Tā bù xiǎo xīn bǎ bēi zi dǎ pò le; bēi zi bèi tā bù xiǎo xīn dǎ pò le; bēi zi dǎ pò le. | He accidentally broke the cup (把); The cup was accidentally broken by him (被); The cup broke (notional passive). | All three describe the same event with different focus: agent-marked, patient-marked, or unmarked. |
Word by word
Each word in this pattern on its own: what it does here, the structure, three more examples, and the mistake to avoid.
把 (bǎ)
Puts a known object before the verb so the sentence can say what happened to it.
Structure: Subject + 把 + object + verb + result
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 请把窗户关上，外面太吵了。 | Qǐng bǎ chuāng hù guān shàng, wài miàn tài chǎo le. | Please close the window. It is too noisy outside. |
| 我已经把作业交给老师了。 | Wǒ yǐ jīng bǎ zuò yè jiāo gěi lǎo shī le. | I have already handed my homework to the teacher. |
| 她把房间打扫得干干净净。 | Tā bǎ fáng jiān dǎ sǎo de gān gān jìng jìng. | She cleaned the room until it was spotless. |
Not: 我把他喜欢。 把 needs a verb that does something to the object. Verbs of feeling or state, such as 喜欢, 是, 有, 知道, 怕, cannot be used in a 把 sentence.
In the official HSK 3.0 grammar outline: level 3, prepositions (引出施事、受事).
把 is also explained in: The 把 Construction (HSK 3) · New Classifiers: 把, 双, 台, 张, 种, 辆 (HSK 3) · 把-construction (disposal) (HSK 4) · Key HSK-4 patterns: integrated review (HSK 4).
被 (bèi)
Marks a passive sentence and introduces the doer after it.
Structure: Patient + 被 + doer + verb + result
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 我的手机被小偷偷走了。 | Wǒ de shǒu jī bèi xiǎo tōu tōu zǒu le. | My phone was stolen by a thief. |
| 那棵树被大风吹倒了。 | Nà kē shù bèi dà fēng chuī dào le. | That tree was blown down by the wind. |
| 他被老板批评了一顿。 | Tā bèi lǎo bǎn pī píng le yí dùn. | He got a talking-to from his boss. |
Not: 我的书被拿走了他。 The doer goes right after 被 and before the verb. Nothing can follow the verb as a doer: 我的书被他拿走了。
In the official HSK 3.0 grammar outline: level 3, prepositions (引出施事、受事).
被 is also explained in: Passive Constructions: 被, 叫, 让 (HSK 3) · 被-construction (passive) (HSK 4).
What you need first
Every topic in GraphChinese names its own prerequisites, and these are the grammar points this one is built on. If a sentence here will not parse, one of them is why.
What this opens up
These patterns list 把-Sentences & Notional Passive among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
The same pattern at other levels
- The 把 Construction — HSK 3
- 把-construction (disposal) — HSK 4
Questions about 把-Sentences & Notional Passive
What does 把字句与意念被动句 (把-Sentences & Notional Passive) mean in Chinese?
The 把 construction moves a known object before the verb to show what is done to it, and at HSK 5 it is set against the notional passive. A notional passive makes the receiver the subject with no 被, as in 衣服洗干净了. It is an HSK 5 grammar point.
How do you use 把字句与意念被动句 (把-Sentences & Notional Passive) in a sentence?
信写好了，可以寄出去了。 — Xìn xiě hǎo le, kě yǐ jì chū qù le. — The letter is written, it can be mailed now. Notional passive: 信 (patient) is the subject, no marker needed.
What do you need to know before 把字句与意念被动句 (把-Sentences & Notional Passive)?
把-construction (disposal) (HSK 4). This pattern is built out of them, so a sentence here that will not parse usually means one of them has not landed yet.
What does 把字句与意念被动句 (把-Sentences & Notional Passive) lead to?
Advanced 把 and Passive Constructions (HSK 6). Each of them names 把字句与意念被动句 (把-Sentences & Notional Passive) among its own prerequisites.
Which verbs cannot be used in a 把 sentence?
Verbs that do not act on an object: 是, 有, 喜欢, 知道, 觉得, 来, 去. A 把 sentence needs a verb that changes the object, so 我把饭吃完了 is fine and 我把他喜欢 is not.
What is a notional passive, and when can I drop 被?
A notional passive has no marker; the meaning comes from context. 衣服洗干净了 means the clothes were washed. Use it when the doer is unimportant. Once the object is already the subject, you cannot add 把 after it.
把-Sentences & Notional Passive is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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