grammatical agent; doer of action
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 5 examplesnoun
the agent or doer of an action; the entity that performs or initiates an action in grammar
In Chinese grammar, the agent (施事) is distinct from the grammatical subject. In passive constructions (e.g., 被字句, 叫字句, 让字句), the agent may appear after the verb or in a prepositional phrase while the subject is the patient (受事).
Yé爷
ye爷
xiào笑
le了
。
Grandpa laughed. (爷爷 is the agent)
Shuǐ水
jié结
chéng成
bīng冰
。
Water freezes into ice. (水 is the agent)
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Yú鱼
jiào叫
māo猫
chī吃
le了
。
The fish was eaten by the cat. (猫 is the agent, though 鱼 is the grammatical subject)
Gōng工
rén人
xiū修
jiàn建
le了
zhè这
zuò座
qiáo桥
。
The workers built this bridge. (工人 is the agent)
Fēng风
chuī吹
luò落
le了
shù树
yè叶
。
The wind blew the leaves off. (风 is the agent)