Grammar Info

N2 Lesson 7: 4/21

(かんが)えられる

Can be considered as, Is thought to be, One can think that, It is conceivable that

考えられている is for a generally accepted opinion only

Structure Legend

Structure

Phrase + (かんが)られる

Details

  • Register

    Standard

  • 使用域

    一般

About と考えられる

In order to express an objective opinion in Japanese, the expression (かんが)えられる will often be used. This is a combination of と, and the passive-indicating auxiliary verb られる. Common translations for this structure include 'can be considered as (A)', 'is thought to be (A)', or 'it is conceivable that (A)'.
As (かんが)えられる begins with と, this structure will frequently appear at the end of entire phrases, converting them into a quote.
  • あの事故(じこ)(あお)運転(うんてん)のせいだ(かんが)えられる
    Tailgating is thought to be the cause of this accident.
  • 日本語(にほんご)文字種(もじしゅ)(おお)いことから、第二(だいに)言語(げんご)として(なら)うのが(むずか)しい(かんが)えられる
    It is thought that Japanese is difficult to learn as a second language due to having several different character types.
When wanting to express a subjective opinion, (おも)われる will be used instead.
  • (わたし)には(かれ)がこの事件(じけん)犯人(はんにん)(おも)われる
    It seems to me that he is the one responsible for this incident.
  • (わたし)にはあなたが(わる)(おも)われる
    It seems to me that you are in the wrong.
Fun-fact - The primary difference between a subjective and objective opinion is that an objective opinion is primarily based on observable facts about the topic (unbiased and focuses on the object), while a subjective opinion is based more on emotions, feelings, or preferences (may be biased, regardless of what is actually true about the topic).
Caution - Compared to (かんが)えられている, (かんが)えられる focuses more on judgements, while the former is primarily used to illustrate widely accepted opinions.

Examples

  • 中国(ちゅうごく)経済(けいざい)成長(せいちょう)(つづ)いていけば(あら)たな(ちょう)大国(たいこく)なる(かんが)えられる

    China may well be considered the new superpower if it maintains its current economic growth.

  • 糖分(とうぶん)豊富(ほうふ)食品(しょくひん)をあまりに()ることは2(がた)糖尿(とうにょう)(びょう)どの病気(びょうき)になる一因(いちいん)(かんが)えられる

    The excessive intake of products rich in sugar is thought to be one of the causes of getting Type 2 diabetes and similar conditions.

  • (ひかり)性質(せいしつ)は、(じつ)粒子(りゅうし)波動(はどう)両方(りょうほう)(かんが)えられる

    The nature of light is actually thought to be both a particle and a wave.

  • 動物(どうぶつ)(せい)脂肪(しぼう)()ることは(がん)どの病気(びょうき)になる一因(いちいん)(かんが)えられるが、()たしてそうでしょうか?

    The consumption of animal fats is thought to be one of the causes of cancer and other conditions. But is it really so?

  • すぐに(あたら)しい(もの)()しがるのは、子供(こども)(あま)やかして(なに)でも()ってあげていたことが原因(げんいん)(かんが)えられる

    It is thought that children immediately desiring new things is caused by parents spoiling them and buying them whatever they want.

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と考えられる – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (2 in total)

  • FredKore

    FredKore

    About 3 years ago

    You might already be aware of this, but these two grammar points are very similar but in different levels: とかんがえられている(N4 L10) and とかんがえられる(N2 L7). Was that on purpose? They seem very similar to be so far apart.

  • dokidokiwakuwaku

    dokidokiwakuwaku

    About 2 months ago

    How does this grammar point differ from とされている? Thanks!

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