Japanese Te-Form: Rules, Conjugation Chart & Examples
て形の使い方
Learn Japanese te-form conjugation with clear rules and charts. Master て-form patterns for JLPT N5 including ている, てください, and more.
The て-form (te-form) is arguably the most important conjugation pattern in Japanese. It's used to connect actions, make requests, describe ongoing states, and much more. Essential for JLPT N5, mastering the て-form opens up countless grammatical structures.
What is the Te-Form?(て形とは)
The て-form is a verb conjugation that ends in て or で. It's called a "connecting form" because it links verbs together and connects to many grammar patterns.
Unlike the dictionary form or polite form, the て-form doesn't indicate tense or politeness on its own—it depends on what follows it.
Conjugation Rules(活用ルール)
The conjugation rules depend on the verb type. Let's break them down:
| Verb Type | Dictionary Form | Te-Form | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ichidan (る-verbs) | 食べる (taberu) | 食べて (tabete) | Drop る, add て |
| Godan う/つ/る | 買う (kau) | 買って (katte) | Change to って |
| Godan む/ぶ/ぬ | 読む (yomu) | 読んで (yonde) | Change to んで |
| Godan く | 書く (kaku) | 書いて (kaite) | Change to いて |
| Godan ぐ | 泳ぐ (oyogu) | 泳いで (oyoide) | Change to いで |
| Godan す | 話す (hanasu) | 話して (hanashite) | Change to して |
| する | する (suru) | して (shite) | Irregular |
| くる | くる (kuru) | きて (kite) | Irregular |
Remember the song: い・ち・り → って, み・に・び → んで, き → いて, ぎ → いで, し → して (i/chi/ri → tte, mi/ni/bi → nde, ki → ite, gi → ide, shi → shite)
Common Uses of Te-Form(て形の使い方)
The て-form is used in many essential patterns:
- Connecting actions: 食べて寝る (eat and sleep)
- Requests: 待ってください (please wait)
- Progressive: 食べている (am eating)
- Permission: 食べてもいい (may eat)
- Prohibition: 食べてはいけない (must not eat)
Te-Form + いる (Progressive)(ている形)
One of the most common patterns is て + いる, which creates the progressive form:
- Ongoing action: 本を読んでいる (I am reading a book)
- Resulting state: 結婚している (I am married)
- Habitual action: 毎日走っている (I run every day)
With motion verbs like 行く or 来る, ている shows a resulting state: 行っている means 'has gone' (and is still there), not 'is going'.
Te-Form + ください (Requests)(てください)
Adding ください after the て-form creates a polite request:
Negative Te-Form(ないで形)
The negative て-form is formed by adding で to the negative form:
食べない → 食べないで (without eating / don't eat and...)
This is used for:
- Negative requests: 食べないでください (please don't eat)
- Without doing: 朝ご飯を食べないで出かけた (I left without eating breakfast)
✓Summary
The て-form is essential for natural Japanese. Key points to remember:
- Ichidan verbs: drop る, add て
- Godan verbs: follow the consonant-based rules
- Irregular verbs: する→して, くる→きて
- Use for connecting, requests, progressive, and more
?Frequently Asked Questions
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Practice the て-form with our interactive quiz → Start with basic verbs and work your way up!
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