Part 2 · Verbs, adjectives and the everyday basics · Lesson 17
The て-form: the joining verb
How to make the て-form of every verb, and the half-dozen jobs it does: giving requests, linking actions in order, giving reasons, and acting as the base for dozens of everyday patterns.
If there is one verb form to know well, it's this one. The て-form is the connecting form: it does not mean anything by itself, but it joins a verb to what comes next. You'll use it, in some shape, in nearly every sentence you read.
How to make it
The て-form is the same as the past (-た) form, except that た becomes て and だ becomes で. If you know the past, you know the て-form:
| Type | Past (-た) | て-form |
|---|---|---|
| ru-verb | 食べた | 食べて |
| う, つ, る | 買った | 買って |
| く | 書いた | 書いて |
| ぐ | 泳いだ | 泳いで |
| す | 話した | 話して |
| ぬ, ぶ, む | 飲んだ | 飲んで |
| する | した | して |
| 来る | 来た | 来て |
| 行く | 行った | 行って |
Used on its own at the end of a sentence, the て-form is a casual request: 見て (look), 待って (wait). To make it polite, you add more words.
Job 1: "Please do it"
て-form + ください = "please do". It's the polite request.
Dropping the ください gives the casual version (待って, 書いて). Adding ね makes it softer (待ってね).
Job 2: First this, then that
The て-form lists actions one after the other. The tense comes at the very end: only the last verb carries it.
Think of て as "and then". Everything before the last verb is in て-form, and the last verb says when it all happened.
Job 3: Doing X by doing Y
Sometimes the first て-verb is the manner or the means of the second:
Job 4: Reason
The て-form can also give a loose reason or cause, especially for feelings and states:
This use is for emotion or a natural consequence. For deliberate reasons (because I decided to...), you need から or ので, covered later.
Job 5: The base for patterns
Most of the useful verb patterns are built on the て-form. Here is a preview of what is coming. Don't try to remember these; just see how common they are.
| Pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 〜ている | is doing; is in the state of |
| 〜てください | please |
| 〜てもいい | may |
| 〜てはいけない | must not |
| 〜てみる | try doing |
| 〜てしまう | end up doing |
| 〜ておく | do in advance |
| 〜てあげる / くれる / もらう | give / receive a favour |
| 〜てから | after doing |
| 〜てくる / ていく | come / go while doing |
All the patterns attach the same way: the verb's て-form, then the pattern. If you know the て-form you can learn each pattern in minutes.
て-form of adjectives and です
Adjectives and です also have a て-form, with the same joining job:
| て-form | |
|---|---|
| 高い | 高くて |
| 静か | 静かで |
| 学生だ | 学生で |
| ない | なくて |
Practise the form until it's automatic
The て-form is worth drilling. The conjugation drill is made for this. Start with the common verbs and practise them until you can produce the て-form instantly. You will then recognise it everywhere.
Longer sentences
The て-form turns a long list of actions into one sentence. Read for the rhythm: て, て, て, final verb.
て-forms also join cause, manner and attempts:
A story of an unlucky morning
Key points
- To make the て-form, take the past form and change た→て, だ→で.
- Used alone, it's a casual request. With ください, it's a polite one.
- It joins actions in order, gives manner or loose reason, and builds many patterns.
- Tense is carried by the last verb only.
- Adjectives and です have joining forms too (くて, で).
Drill these patterns
Short example sentences for the points in this lesson: