Giving and receiving: あげる, くれる, もらう
Japanese has three verbs for giving, and the one you pick depends on who gives to whom. あげる is giving to someone else, くれる is someone giving to you or your family, and もらう is receiving. The rest of this course builds on these three. Tap to hear any line. The bar at the bottom plays a hands-free drill for walking.
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25 giving and receiving words
Each card shows a word, the form used and a sentence about presents, sweets, pocket money and borrowing things. Watch who gives to whom in each one. Eight use words or forms from earlier courses.
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Who gives to whom
Picture yourself in the middle. Things going away from you use あげる. Things coming to you or your family use くれる. もらう is the same event told by the person who gets it.
| Verb | Who to whom | Example |
|---|
- Coming your way? If it comes to you or your family, it's くれる: . Anything going away from you is あげる.
- Two ways to say it. and describe the same present.
- Not to people above you. あげる to a boss or a teacher can sound like you're doing them a favour. Just hand it over with or どうぞ.
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Four patterns to use today
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Say it in Japanese
Say each one out loud before you reveal the answer. Getting close counts.