Why is 〜に受かる used to mean "to pass"?


I'm having trouble understanding why 〜に受かる means "to pass". What would the
equivalent logic in English be for this phrase? _(Something like the
intransitive form of receive?)_

Also, why is the particle に used with 受かる, here?




[Snailboat's link](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/11855/why-
is-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%AB%E5%8F%97%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8B-used-to-mean-to-
pass#comment25372_11855) is a very interesting read and you should read it if
possible (the following answer is mainly based on it).

First, one should note that the first usages of `受かる` exist from the Meiji
period. This means it is a relatively _new_ word. Around this time, there was
something called [言文一致運動]{げんぶんいっちうんどう}, where people were trying to change the
written language to match what was spoken. As [noted in this
link](http://www.weblio.jp/content/%E5%8F%97%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8B), `受かる` is
mainly used in _spoken_ language (`主に、話し言葉で用いる`), so it may have existed
before the Meiji period in spoken language, but the main point from this is
that **it is a _relatively_ new word which evolved out of spoken language.**

As you may have already noticed, `受かる` is somewhat _irregular_. It comes from
the verb `受ける` but **only means** `合格する` and has no other meaning in modern
Japanese (according to any modern dictionary). (However, this always wasn't
the case though, as there was the usage `電波が受かる`).

Note that many verbs come in pairs (which can be seen as
transitive/intransitive), for example `見る/見える` or `温める/温まる`, were `を` is used
for the former and `が` is generally used for the latter. Originally, `受かる`
followed this pattern and `が受かる` was used. However, this evolved into the
modern usage `に受かる` and the `が` usage has died out. Why? Because `受かる` has a
restricted meaning, i.e. it only means `合格する` and nothing else. Note that this
meaning _is not_ the intransitive form of receive, and using the が form would
make it look like that. Also, since the opposite is `試験に落ちる` which uses `に`,
`に` becomes a nice fit.

So, how did 受かる come to have such a restricted meaning? Simply due to the fact
that there is no _need_ for an intransitive form of 受ける. Any intransitive use
can be replaced by another verb which is more appropriate, like 電話がかかる for
電話を受ける. Also, when you think of the transitive/intransitive pairs, generally
the intransitive form is _the result_ of the transitive. For example, in the
examples 牛乳を温める/牛乳が温まる, the result of the act of warming milk is having warm
milk. But what is the result of taking a test? The result would be whether you
passed or failed, not just the fact that you have taken it, this why it
naturally flows that 受かる came to mean "to pass".

There is a lot more in the pdf that explains things better than I do, but to
sum it up

  * 受かる evolved naturally out of spoken language.

  * It does not carry the meaning of the intransitive form of receive because it can be replaced by better alternatives and there is no use for it.

  * It changed to the に form because it better fits with the opposite に落ちる and because it does not fit into the transitive/intransitive pairs like other verbs.

I may have mistakes in the above, so please let me know, but hopefully this
helps!




[Snailboat's link](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/11855/why-
is-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%AB%E5%8F%97%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8B-used-to-mean-to-
pass#comment25372_11855) is a very interesting read and you should read it if
possible (the following answer is mainly based on it).

First, one should note that the first usages of `受かる` exist from the Meiji
period. This means it is a relatively _new_ word. Around this time, there was
something called [言文一致運動]{げんぶんいっちうんどう}, where people were trying to change the
written language to match what was spoken. As [noted in this
link](http://www.weblio.jp/content/%E5%8F%97%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8B), `受かる` is
mainly used in _spoken_ language (`主に、話し言葉で用いる`), so it may have existed
before the Meiji period in spoken language, but the main point from this is
that **it is a _relatively_ new word which evolved out of spoken language.**

As you may have already noticed, `受かる` is somewhat _irregular_. It comes from
the verb `受ける` but **only means** `合格する` and has no other meaning in modern
Japanese (according to any modern dictionary). (However, this always wasn't
the case though, as there was the usage `電波が受かる`).

Note that many verbs come in pairs (which can be seen as
transitive/intransitive), for example `見る/見える` or `温める/温まる`, were `を` is used
for the former and `が` is generally used for the latter. Originally, `受かる`
followed this pattern and `が受かる` was used. However, this evolved into the
modern usage `に受かる` and the `が` usage has died out. Why? Because `受かる` has a
restricted meaning, i.e. it only means `合格する` and nothing else. Note that this
meaning _is not_ the intransitive form of receive, and using the が form would
make it look like that. Also, since the opposite is `試験に落ちる` which uses `に`,
`に` becomes a nice fit.

So, how did 受かる come to have such a restricted meaning? Simply due to the fact
that there is no _need_ for an intransitive form of 受ける. Any intransitive use
can be replaced by another verb which is more appropriate, like 電話がかかる for
電話を受ける. Also, when you think of the transitive/intransitive pairs, generally
the intransitive form is _the result_ of the transitive. For example, in the
examples 牛乳を温める/牛乳が温まる, the result of the act of warming milk is having warm
milk. But what is the result of taking a test? The result would be whether you
passed or failed, not just the fact that you have taken it, this why it
naturally flows that 受かる came to mean "to pass".

There is a lot more in the pdf that explains things better than I do, but to
sum it up

  * 受かる evolved naturally out of spoken language.

  * It does not carry the meaning of the intransitive form of receive because it can be replaced by better alternatives and there is no use for it.

  * It changed to the に form because it better fits with the opposite に落ちる and because it does not fit into the transitive/intransitive pairs like other verbs.

I may have mistakes in the above, so please let me know, but hopefully this
helps!

