The te-form

1. Make the te-form of group 2 verbs and the two irregular verbs

   For a group 2 verb, swap the final る for て: 食べる, 食べて; 見る, 見て. From the ます form, simply swap ます for て: 食べます, 食べて. The two irregular verbs become して (from する) and 来て (from 来る, read きて).

2. Make the te-form of group 1 verbs

   Group 1 verbs change by their last kana. う, つ and る become って (かう, かって; まつ, まって; かえる, かえって), and む, ぶ and ぬ become んで (のむ, のんで; あそぶ, あそんで). く becomes いて (かく, かいて), ぐ becomes いで (およぐ, およいで) and す becomes して (はなす, はなして). The one exception is 行く, which becomes 行って.

3. Ask politely with てください

   Te-form plus ください makes a polite request: ちょっと まって ください, もういちど 言って ください. Put すみません first to sound even more polite.

4. Ask for and give permission with てもいいです

   てもいいです means it's all right to: ここに すわっても いいです. Add か to ask: しゃしんを とっても いいですか. To say yes, use はい、 どうぞ or いいですよ.

5. State a rule with てはいけません

   てはいけません means you must not: じゅぎょう中に けいたいを つかっては いけません. You will meet it in school rules and on signs, so it often turns up in reading texts.

6. Link actions in order with the te-form

   Put every verb but the last in the te-form to say one thing after another: 家に かえって、 しゅくだいを して、 ゲームを しました. The last verb sets the tense for the whole sentence, so the same chain works for the past or the future.

7. Say after doing something with てから

   Te-form plus から means after doing, and it stresses that one thing comes first: ごはんを 食べてから、 さんぽします. Don't confuse it with から after です or ます, which means because.

8. Use ています for actions in progress and for states

   ています can describe an action going on now: 今 おんがくを きいています. It also describes a lasting state: ロンドンに すんでいます (I live in London), ちちは びょういんで はたらいています (my dad works at a hospital). With know, it is しっています, but don't know is しりません.

Te-form

The verb form ending in て or で, used to link actions and to build many patterns: 食べて, のんで.

てください

Please do, a polite request: 見て ください.

てもいいです

It's all right to, for permission: 入っても いいですか.

てはいけません

You must not, for rules: 入っては いけません.

てから

After doing, added to the te-form: 食べてから means after eating.

ています

Is doing, or a lasting state: よんでいます, すんでいます.

Group 1 verb

A verb whose te-form depends on its last kana, like のむ (のんで) or かく (かいて).

Group 2 verb

A verb ending in る that swaps it for て: 見る, 見て.

Irregular verb

する and 来る, whose forms have to be learned: して, 来て.

• Writing かいて for bought, when it is the te-form of write.

  かう (buy) ends in う, so it becomes かって. かく (write) ends in く and becomes かいて.

• Writing 行いて as the te-form of 行く.

  行く is the one exception: 行って. Every other verb ending in く follows the rule: かく, かいて.

• Leaving out the small っ, so まって becomes まて, or かえって (going home) becomes かえて (changing).

  Group 1 verbs ending in う, つ and る need the small っ: まって, かえって, 入って. Leaving it out can turn it into another word.

• Using ています for a plan, as in あした 行っています for I'm going tomorrow.

  English uses I'm going for the future, but Japanese uses the ます form: あした 行きます. Keep ています for what is happening now or a lasting state.

• Saying I don't know as しっていません.

  Know is しっています, but don't know is simply しりません.

More Verbs and their forms topics

• Polite verbs: the masu form
• Existing, giving and receiving
• Plain forms
• The nai-form
• The ta-form
• The dictionary form

Keep reading

• What are the GCSE Japanese grade boundaries?
• The GCSE Japanese syllabus, explained