Grammar Info

N5 Lesson 10: 9/12

くれる

To give (me), To be given

For both くれる and あげる, に marks the recipient

Structure Legend

Structure

Giver(*)(1) + Recipient(*) + Object(*)くれる

Recipient(*) + Giver(*)(1) + Object(*)くれる

Giver(*)(1) + Object(*) + Recipient(*)くれる

(*) Giver, Recipent and Object are Nouns
(1)

Details

  • Part of Speech

    Verb

  • Word Type

    Independent Word

  • Register

    Standard

  • 品詞

    動詞

  • 単語の種類

    自立語

  • 使用域

    一般

Rare Kanji

呉れる

About くれる

くれる is generally taught as part of a set of 3 verbs that are regularly used for giving and receiving in Japanese. These verbs are くれる, あげる, and もらう. くれる means 'to give' (to you, or someone that is part of your 'in' group).
  • おばあちゃんいつもお菓子(かし)くれる
    My grandmother always gives me candy.
  • 毎年(まいとし)彼女(かのじょ)手紙(てがみ)くれる
    Every year, my girlfriend gives me a letter.
  • (はは)毎日(まいにち)(わたし)クッキーくれる
    My mother gives me cookies everyday.
With くれる and あげる, they both function in the regular way you would expect (regarding particles). This means that will always mark the giver (the person performing the action), and will mark the recipient (the person that is the 'destination' of the thing that is given). This means that will be used to mark the 'object' that is given, as is usually the case.
The giver/recipient are often omitted from sentences with くれる, as one/both are usually obvious from context, or the sentence may be focussing on the object.
  • (よめ)プレゼントくれ
    My wife gave me a present.
  • (わたし)プレゼントくれ
    A present was given to me.
As can be seen here, the same nuance is kept, even when things are omitted.
Fun Fact
What someone considers their 'in' group will be different for each person, but usually consists of members of your family, clubs that you are in, or something similar that has a 'group' atmosphere (that you are a part of).
The giver will always be someone that is more distant than the people that are in the 'group'.
  • 近所(きんじょ)(ひと)旅行(りょこう)から(かえ)()(ちち)土産(みやげ)くれ
    When the neighbors return home from traveling, they give my father souvenirs.
  • 先生(せんせい)クラブ仲間(なかま)としこちゃん(はな)くれ
    The teacher gave flowers to my club member, Toshiko-chan.
Caution
When we want to say that we (or someone else) gave something to someone that is not in our 'in' group, we will need to use あげる instead.

Examples

  • (はは)(ぼく)かっこいいペンくれた

    My mom gave me a cool pen.

  • (あに)((わたし))便利(べんり)(はこ)くれた

    My brother gave me a convenient box.

  • おじいちゃん((わたし))(ふる)自転車(じてんしゃ)くれた

    My grandpa gave me an old bicycle.

  • (かれ)((わたし))かわいい(くつ)くれて(うれ)しいです

    He gave me some cute shoes, so I am happy.

    Since くれる is followed immediately by うれしい, the conjunction form くれて will be required.

  • 友達(ともだち)毎週(まいしゅう)土曜日(どようび)(わたし)(はは)クッキーくれる

    My friend gives my mom cookies every Saturday.

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くれる – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (13 in total)

  • jrmr50

    jrmr50

    About 2 years ago

    if we use て here, what puts the sentence into the past tense? Why isn’t it 'he gives some cute shoes to me, so I am happy`

    I had opted for くれた

  • FredKore

    FredKore

    About 2 years ago

    The comma indicates that it has to be て-form to join with something that comes after. If you put くれた then that would be the end of the sentence.
    It’s translated as past tense because the situation is that ‘I am currently happy about something that happened’.

    The pattern is like these grammar points:
    Verb[て] + B | Japanese Grammar SRS
    てくれてありがとう | Japanese Grammar SRS
    てすみません | Japanese Grammar SRS

  • MikkaT

    MikkaT

    About 6 months ago

    Hi, I saw these diagrams which helped understanding the concept better.

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