Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
In Malay, you cannot use the standard 'di-' passive with 'aku' or 'saya'; instead, use the 'ter-' or 'kena' construction.
- Never say 'Saya dimakan oleh dia' (Incorrect).
- Use 'kena' for negative experiences: 'Saya kena marah oleh bos.'
- Use 'ter-' for accidental actions: 'Saya terpukul oleh pintu.'
Passive Construction for 1st Person
| Type | Structure | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Negative
|
Subject + kena + Verb
|
Adversative
|
Saya kena marah
|
|
Accidental
|
Subject + ter- + Verb
|
Unintentional
|
Saya terpijak
|
|
Negative Agent
|
Subject + kena + Verb + oleh + Agent
|
Adversative (Agent)
|
Saya kena marah oleh ibu
|
|
Accidental Agent
|
Subject + ter- + Verb + oleh + Agent
|
Unintentional (Agent)
|
Saya terpukul oleh bola
|
|
Negative Question
|
Adakah + Subject + kena + Verb?
|
Adversative Question
|
Adakah saya kena pilih?
|
|
Accidental Question
|
Adakah + Subject + ter- + Verb?
|
Unintentional Question
|
Adakah saya terpukul?
|
Meanings
The passive voice in Malay typically uses the 'di-' prefix, but this is grammatically restricted for 1st person pronouns. To express being the recipient of an action as 'I', we shift to 'kena' (negative) or 'ter-' (accidental).
Negative Passive
Expressing an unpleasant experience where the subject is the victim.
“Saya kena marah.”
“Aku kena denda.”
Accidental Passive
Expressing an action that happened to the subject unintentionally.
“Saya terpukul oleh bola.”
“Aku terlanggar oleh kereta.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative (Neg)
|
Saya kena + V
|
Saya kena marah
|
|
Affirmative (Acc)
|
Saya ter- + V
|
Saya terpijak
|
|
Negative
|
Saya tak kena + V
|
Saya tak kena marah
|
|
Question
|
Adakah saya kena + V?
|
Adakah saya kena marah?
|
|
With Agent
|
Saya kena + V + oleh X
|
Saya kena marah oleh guru
|
|
Past Tense
|
Saya kena + V + tadi
|
Saya kena marah tadi
|
격식 수준 스펙트럼
Saya telah ditegur oleh pihak atasan. (Workplace)
Saya kena marah oleh bos. (Workplace)
Aku kena marah. (Workplace)
Kena sembur gila. (Workplace)
Passive Voice Decision Tree
3rd Person
- di- Standard Passive
1st Person
- kena Negative
- ter- Accidental
수준별 예문
Saya kena marah.
I got scolded.
Saya kena denda.
I got fined.
Saya kena tolak.
I got pushed.
Saya kena tipu.
I got cheated.
Saya terpijak paku.
I accidentally stepped on a nail.
Saya terlanggar pintu.
I accidentally hit the door.
Saya kena panggil bos.
I was called by the boss.
Saya kena hujan.
I got caught in the rain.
Saya kena marah oleh guru.
I was scolded by the teacher.
Saya terlepas bas tadi.
I accidentally missed the bus earlier.
Saya kena pilih untuk projek itu.
I was chosen for that project.
Saya tak kena denda pun.
I didn't get fined at all.
Saya kena kritik oleh rakan sekerja.
I was criticized by a colleague.
Saya terpaksa buat kerja itu.
I was forced to do that work.
Saya kena tuduh mencuri.
I was accused of stealing.
Saya terkejut dengan berita itu.
I was surprised by the news.
Saya kena fitnah oleh pihak lawan.
I was slandered by the opposing party.
Saya terperangkap dalam situasi sukar.
I was trapped in a difficult situation.
Saya kena arahkan untuk berhenti.
I was ordered to stop.
Saya terpaksa akur dengan keputusan itu.
I was forced to comply with that decision.
Saya kena diskriminasi di tempat kerja.
I was discriminated against at work.
Saya terpedaya dengan janji manisnya.
I was deceived by his sweet promises.
Saya kena desak untuk meletak jawatan.
I was pressured to resign.
Saya terkesan dengan kata-katanya.
I was affected by his words.
혼동하기 쉬운
Both are passive markers.
자주 하는 실수
Saya dimakan.
Saya kena makan.
Saya kena puji.
Saya dipuji.
Saya ter-marah.
Saya kena marah.
Saya dipanggil oleh dia.
Saya kena panggil oleh dia.
문장 패턴
Saya kena ___ oleh ___.
Real World Usage
Aku kena tipu!
Use Kena for Bad Luck
Smart Tips
Use 'kena'.
발음
Kena
Pronounced as two syllables: ke-na.
Complaining
Saya kena marah! ↘
Shows frustration.
암기하기
기억법
Kena is for the 'K'omplaints, Ter- is for the 'T'errible accidents.
시각적 연상
Imagine a person getting rained on (kena hujan) and another person accidentally tripping (terpijak).
Rhyme
Kena for bad, Ter- for mistake, use these two for goodness sake.
Story
I was walking when I kena marah by my boss. Then, I terlanggar a table and spilled my coffee. It was a bad day.
Word Web
챌린지
Write 3 sentences about your worst day using 'kena' and 'ter-'.
문화 노트
Using 'kena' is very common in casual speech to express shared frustration.
Kena comes from the verb 'to hit/touch'.
대화 시작하기
Pernahkah anda kena marah?
일기 주제
자주 하는 실수
Test Yourself
Saya ___ marah oleh ibu.
Score: /1
연습 문제
1 exercisesSaya ___ marah oleh ibu.
Score: /1
자주 묻는 질문 (1)
No, it is grammatically incorrect.
Scaffolded Practice
1
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Passive voice
Malay restricts passive by person.
Pasiva perifrástica
No person-based restriction.
Passiv
No person-based restriction.
Ukemigata
Japanese uses suffixes.
Majhul
Morphological vs periphrastic.
Bei-construction
Bei is more universal.
