aspect N4 essential casualpolitewritten
しまう — to put away / finish
しまう
Meaning
- put (something) away; bring to a close — the lexical verb behind the aspect auxiliary てしまう
Key sentence
本を棚にしまった。
I put the book away on the shelf.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Godan verb (う-verb) | しまう → しまった / しまって | おもちゃをしまう (put the toys away) |
Examples
使った道具を引き出しにしまう。
I put the tools I used away in the drawer.
その店は八時にしまう。
That shop closes at eight.
大切な手紙を箱にしまっておいた。
I put the precious letter away in a box.
Easily confused with
Notes
- Standalone しまう means to put something away or close up shop (店をしまう). The grammaticalized てしまう is far more common in everyday speech.
See しまう in real sentences
Jengo shows しまう 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.