Verbs · N3

Causative-passive: be made to do

Combine causative and passive viewpoint when someone is compelled to act.

In short

Forms such as 食べさせられる present the subject as the person affected by being caused to perform an action.

How it works

This construction is especially useful when the speaker had little choice: 子どものころ、毎日野菜を食べさせられました.

Useful contrast

It is structurally the passive of a causative, so recognizing the layers is easier than memorizing it as an unrelated long ending.

Examples

残業させられました。
I was made to work overtime.
毎日練習させられた。
I was made to practise every day.

Common pitfall

Long forms can be hard to hear. Break them into the base verb + causative + passive rather than guessing from the final syllables.

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