Understanding the Indonesian Passive Voice

Have you ever noticed how often English sentences begin with I? I think… I want… I bought… I saw… This is hardly surprising. English is spoken primarily in cultures that place a strong emphasis on the individual. As a result, the person performing an action—the agent—is often the center of attention.

Indonesian culture traditionally places greater value on the group than on the individual. Modesty, harmony, and social cohesion are generally more important than standing out or drawing attention to oneself. While modern Indonesian society is diverse and rapidly changing, these cultural preferences are still reflected in everyday communication.

This cultural difference is mirrored in the language. Whereas English speakers often emphasize who performs an action, Indonesian speakers frequently place the focus on what happens or on the person or thing affected by the action. Consequently, Indonesian makes much more frequent use of passive constructions than English.

Compare the following sentences:

I bought the book yesterday.

Buku itu saya beli kemarin.

Although the English sentence begins with the speaker (I), the Indonesian sentence begins with the object (buku itu). The focus has shifted from the doer to the thing being talked about. This way of presenting information is one of the defining characteristics of Indonesian grammar.

Understanding the Indonesian passive voice is therefore not simply a matter of learning another grammatical construction. It also means learning to look at events from a different perspective—one in which the object or the result of an action is often more important than the person performing it.

The Indonesian passive voice is one of the most important grammar topics for learners of Indonesian. Unlike English, Indonesian uses passive constructions very frequently, both in spoken and written language. Native speakers often choose a passive construction when they want to emphasize the object of an action rather than the person performing it.

There are two main passive constructions in Indonesian: Passive Type 1, also known as the di- passive, and Passive Type 2. In addition, Indonesian also has related constructions with ter- and ke-…-an, which often express accidental, unintended, or involuntary events.

Active Sentences in Indonesian

Let us begin with a simple active sentence:

Saya membaca buku itu.
I read that book.

Here, saya is the actor, buku itu is the object, and membaca is an active verb formed with the prefix meN-.

Passive Type 1: The di- Passive

Passive Type 1 is formed with the prefix di-. It is only used with third person agents (he, she, it), when the agent is not a person (e.g. “The car was damaged by the hail”, or when the agent is not mentioned (“e.g. “The car was damaged”) unknown, or unimportant. The agent is optionally expressed with oleh (by).

Formation:

Object + di-verb + optional agent

Examples:

Surat itu ditulis kemarin.
The letter was written yesterday.

Rumah itu dibangun pada tahun 1920.
The house was built in 1920.

Makanan itu sudah dimakan.
The food has already been eaten.

In these examples, the person who performed the action is not mentioned. This is very common in Indonesian.

If the agent is mentioned in a Type 1 passive sentence, it is usually introduced by oleh.

Buku itu ditulis oleh Pramoedya Ananta Toer.
The book was written by Pramoedya Ananta Toer.

Gedung itu diresmikan oleh presiden.
The building was inaugurated by the president.

The di- passive is especially common in formal Indonesian, written Indonesian, news reports, academic writing, and situations where the actor is less important than the action or result.

Passive Type 2

Passive Type 2 is one of the most characteristic features of Indonesian grammar. It is formed without the prefix di-. Instead, the object is placed at the beginning of the sentence, followed by the agent and the base form of the verb.

Formation:

Object + agent + base verb

Examples:

Buku itu saya baca.
I read that book. (literally “the book was read by me”)

Surat itu dia tulis kemarin.
He wrote that letter yesterday.

Mobil itu kami jual tahun lalu.
We sold that car last year.

Film itu mereka tonton di bioskop.
They watched that movie at the cinema.

In Passive Type 2, the verb appears in its base form:

• baca, not dibaca
• tulis, not ditulis
• jual, not dijual
• tonton, not ditonton

When Do We Use Passive Type 2?

Passive Type 2 is used when the agent is a personal pronoun or a clearly identified person placed immediately before the verb.

Common agents include:

• saya — I
• aku — I
• kami — we
• kita — we
• kamu — you
• Anda — you
• dia — he/she
• mereka — they
• personal names, such as Maria, Budi, or Pak Hasan

More examples:

Tugas itu sudah saya kerjakan.
I have already done that assignment.

Pertanyaan itu belum dia jawab.
He/she has not answered that question yet.

Masalah itu Pak Hasan jelaskan dengan baik.
Pak Hasan explained that problem well.

A Very Common Mistake

Many learners incorrectly combine Passive Type 1 and Passive Type 2. For example:

*Buku itu dibaca oleh saya.

This is incorrect because the agent is first person. With first and second person agents, Passive Type 2—which does not use di-—must be used.

The correct sentence is:

Buku itu saya baca.

Likewise, the following sentence is incorrect:

*Surat itu dia ditulis.

The correct form is:

Surat itu dia tulis.

Passive Type 1 vs. Passive Type 2

Active	Passive Type 1	Passive Type 2
Saya membaca buku itu.	Buku itu dibaca.	Buku itu saya baca.
Dia menulis surat itu.	Surat itu ditulis.	Surat itu dia tulis.
Kami menjual mobil itu.	Mobil itu dijual.	Mobil itu kami jual.

The important difference is this:

• Passive Type 1 uses di- and often leaves the agent unmentioned.
• Passive Type 2 uses the base verb and places the agent directly before the verb.

Is Passive Type 2 Informal?

No. Passive Type 2 is not simply an informal construction. It is very common in spoken Indonesian, but it also occurs in written Indonesian, newspapers, literature, formal writing, and official communication.

The choice between Passive Type 1 and Passive Type 2 is not only a question of formality. It depends mainly on the structure of the sentence and on whether the agent is mentioned directly before the verb. Passive Type 2 is mandatory when the agent is a first or sencond person pronoun. With a third person pronoun (ia, dia, mereka), you can use Passive Type 1 (Surat itu dia tulis) or Passive Type 2 (Surat itu ditulisnya).

The ter- Passive

Indonesian also has many verbs with the prefix ter-. These often express accidental, unintended, or spontaneous events. Sometimes they also describe a resulting state. The agent cannot be stated in most ter- constructions.

Examples:

Pintu itu terbuka.
The door is open.

Gelas itu terjatuh.
The glass fell accidentally.

Dompet saya tertinggal di rumah.
I accidentally left my wallet at home.

Nama saya tidak tertulis di daftar.
My name is not written on the list.

The prefix ter- often suggests that something happened unintentionally or that something is in a certain state.

The ke-…-an Construction

The construction ke-…-an is also related to passive meaning, but it usually expresses that someone experiences something involuntarily or is affected by a condition.

Examples:

Saya kehujanan.
I got caught in the rain.

Dia kedinginan.
He/she is cold. (i.e. overcome by the cold)

Kami kemalaman.
We ended up being out too late.

Anak itu ketakutan.
The child was frightened.

These forms are not passive in exactly the same way as di- or Passive Type 2. They express an affected state or an involuntary experience.

Summary

Indonesian has several ways to express passive or passive-like meanings.

• Passive Type 1 uses di-: Buku itu dibaca.
• Passive Type 2 uses the base verb with the agent before the verb: Buku itu saya baca.
• ter- often expresses accidental events or resulting states: Dompet saya tertinggal.
• ke-…-an often expresses an involuntary experience or affected condition: Saya kehujanan.

For learners of Indonesian, the most important point is this: do not combine di- with Passive Type 2. Say Buku itu saya baca, not *Buku itu saya dibaca.

Once you understand the difference between the di- passive and Passive Type 2, Indonesian sentence structure becomes much clearer. You will also begin to notice how often native speakers use passive constructions in everyday conversation.

Indonesian Online

Indonesian passive voice is, admittedly, one of the more challenging aspects of the language. If you are learning with a native speaker, don’t expect them to be able to explain it in detail. Native speakers use passive constructions intuitively—they instinctively know when to use Passive Type 1, Passive Type 2, or the ter- and ke-…-an forms. However, like native speakers of any language, most have never studied the underlying grammar and therefore cannot explain when or why one form is preferred over another.

At Indonesian Online, we take a different approach. Rather than overwhelming you with grammar all at once, we introduce the passive voice step by step. You will first encounter it in our beginner course, The Indonesian Way, and continue building your understanding throughout the intermediate and advanced courses, culminating in Serba-Serbi Nusantara. By progressing gradually and with plenty of real-life examples, you will develop an intuitive feel for Indonesian passive constructions while also understanding the grammar behind them.