modality N5 essential casualpolitewritten
〜たほうがいい — had better ~ / should ~
〜たほうがいい ・ たほうがいい
Builds on た形
Meaning
- had better ~ / you should ~ / it'd be better to ~ — concrete advice for this situation
Key sentence
早く寝たほうがいい。
You'd better go to bed early.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb (past / た-form) for the affirmative | V-た + ほうがいい | 病院に行ったほうがいい |
| Negative advice uses the ない-form (non-past) | V-ない + ほうがいい | 無理しないほうがいい |
Examples
傘を持っていったほうがいいよ。
You'd better take an umbrella.
そのことは先生に相談したほうがいい。
You should talk to the teacher about that.
今日は出かけないほうがいい。
You'd better not go out today.
When you can't use it
- For 'had better DO', use the past form (寝たほうがいい). The non-past 寝るほうがいい is a weaker general comparison ('sleeping is the better option'), not pointed advice. But the negative side flips to non-past: 寝ないほうがいい, never 寝なかったほうがいい.
Easily confused with
See 〜たほうがいい in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜たほうがいい the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled from published Japanese grammar references.