受身
うけみ · ukemi · JLPT N1 · noun
passive voice
受身 = 受 receive + 身 body: the subject's body receives the action (passive)
受 means receive or undergo and 身 means body or self. In a 受身 sentence the subject receives the action, as in 叱られた (I was scolded), where the verb is marked passive.
受 — hand 爫 (top) + 冖 + hand 又 (bottom)
Originally a pictograph showing two hands passing an object (the middle 冖 represented a boat or tray) between them. It depicted the act of giving and receiving, so the character meant both 'to give' and 'to receive.' Later 授 was created with the hand radical 扌 to mean 'give,' leaving 受 to mean 'receive' or 'accept.'
身 — pictograph of a pregnant body
身 is a pictograph originally depicting a person with a swollen belly, representing a pregnant woman in profile. Over time the meaning broadened from 'pregnancy' or 'torso' to refer to the body in general, and by extension oneself or one's person.