由 + 人 + 动词
by: says whose job something is
Structure
事情 + 由 + 人 + （来） + 动词
What it means
“By”: says whose job or responsibility something is.
How it is built
Task + 由 + person + (来) + verb: 晚饭由我来做，你们休息吧 (I’ll make dinner; you all rest). Often with 负责 or 决定: 房子里的东西坏了，由房东负责修.
When to use it
Common in rules, contracts and arrangements: 水电费由你自己付. 由 is about who is responsible; 被 is about something happening to someone.
Watch out
Don’t use 被 for whose job it is: ✗ 晚饭被我做。 ✓ 晚饭由我来做。 Other uses of 由: “from” (h3-17) and 由……组成 “is made up of” (h4-12).
Examples
水电费由你自己付。
You pay the water and electricity yourself.
房子里的东西坏了，由房东负责修。
If something in the flat breaks, the landlord is responsible for fixing it.
晚饭由我来做，你们休息吧。
I’ll make dinner; you all have a rest.
谁对谁错，最后由法官来判断。
Who is right and who is wrong is decided in the end by the judge.
Learn this in HSK 4 · Lesson 18: 法律常识 (Rules and rights)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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