auxiliary N2 uncommon casualpolitewritten
〜てみせる — do ~ to show / I'll show you I can ~
〜てみせる ・ てみせる
Builds on て形
Meaning
① do ~ to demonstrate (to someone): do ~ so that someone can see / show how by doing — performing an action for another person's benefit
② I'll definitely do ~ (resolve): I'll do ~, just you watch / I'll show them ~ — a declaration of determination to a real or imagined audience
Key sentence
① do ~ to demonstrate (to someone)
先生は、まず正しい発音をやってみせた。
The teacher first demonstrated the correct pronunciation.
② I'll definitely do ~ (resolve)
今度こそ、必ず合格してみせる。
This time I'll pass, just you watch.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb て-form + みせる | Vて + みせる | やってみせる / 勝ってみせる |
When: The demonstrate sense is neutral; the resolve sense is emphatic and often pairs with 必ず / きっと / 今度こそ, declaring determination.
Examples
① do ~ to demonstrate (to someone)
子どもに、箸の使い方を持ってみせる。
I show my child how to hold chopsticks by doing it myself.
② I'll definitely do ~ (resolve)
いつか必ず成功してみせると心に誓った。
I vowed to myself that I'd succeed one day, no matter what.
Easily confused with
〜てみる てみる = 'try ~ing and see (for oneself)', tentative and inward; てみせる = 'do ~ for others to see' or 'I'll show you I can' — outward-facing, either a demonstration or a vow, never tentative. 〜よう / 〜つもりだ A plain volitional states an intention; してみせる adds the nuance of *proving it to an audience* — 'I'll do it, and you'll see'.
Notes
- 見せる ('to show') keeps its literal force: someone is meant to witness the action, whether a real onlooker (demonstrate) or the people the speaker wants to prove wrong (resolve).
See 〜てみせる in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜てみせる 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 Intermediate Japanese Grammar.