other N5 essential casualpolitewritten
くれる — to give (to me)
くれる
Meaning
- to give to me / my in-group — the giver is the subject, but the gift comes toward the speaker's side
Key sentence
友達が私に本をくれた。
My friend gave me a book.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| giver が, recipient (me) に, thing を | [giver] が [me/in-group] に [thing] をくれる | 父が時計をくれた |
Variants
くださる — honorific: a superior gives to me — 先生がくださった
Examples
祖母がお小遣いをくれた。
My grandmother gave me some pocket money.
知らない人が道を教えてくれた。
A stranger told me the way.
When you can't use it
- The receiver must be the speaker or the speaker's in-group, and the giver is the subject (marked が). For giving to a third party, switch to あげる: ×田中さんが鈴木さんにくれた → あげた.
Easily confused with
See くれる in real sentences
Jengo shows くれる the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.