aspect N4 common casualpolitewritten
ておく — do ~ in advance / in preparation
ておく
Builds on て形
Meaning
- do ~ in advance / get ~ done ahead of time — an action taken now for a future purpose
Key sentence
旅行の前にホテルを予約しておく。
I'll book a hotel ahead of the trip.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb (て-form) | V-て + おく | 買う → 買っておく |
Variants
とく / どく — casual contraction: 買っとく, 読んどく
Examples
会議までに資料を読んでおきます。
I'll read through the materials before the meeting.
ビールを冷やしておいたよ。
I chilled the beer in advance for you.
使ったら元の場所に戻しておいてね。
When you're done, put it back where it was, okay?
Easily confused with
Notes
- A second use is 'leave something as it is' — そのままにしておいて (leave it as it is). Same おく, but the nuance is letting a state stand rather than preparing for the future.
See ておく in real sentences
Jengo shows ておく 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.