What Are Te-Form Helpers?
A handful of everyday verbs — いる, ある, おく, しまう, みる, いく, and くる — do double duty. On their own they mean "be," "put," "finish," "see," "go," and "come." Attached to the te-form of another verb, they lose most of that literal meaning and instead say how the action unfolds: whether it is in progress, finished, done in advance, tried out, or moving toward or away from the speaker. Japanese grammar calls them 補助動詞 (helper verbs), and they are normally written in kana.
These forms are everywhere in speech, so learning to read them quickly — and to hear their contracted forms — makes a large difference to comprehension.
ている: In Progress, or in a State
〜ている is the first helper most learners meet, and the most misunderstood. It has two main meanings, and the verb decides which one you get.
Action in progress — with verbs that describe an activity that lasts over time:
Resulting state — with verbs that describe a change that happens in an instant. Here 〜ている means the change has already happened and its result continues:
| Verb | 〜ている means |
|---|---|
| 知る (to come to know) | 知っている — I know |
| 結婚する (to get married) | 結婚している — is married |
| 死ぬ (to die) | 死んでいる — is dead |
| 持つ (to take hold of) | 持っている — I have (it) |
| 住む (to take up residence) | 住んでいる — I live (in) |
| 開く (to open) | 開いている — is open |
| 壊れる (to break) | 壊れている — is broken |
| 行く (to go) | 行っている — has gone (and is there) |
The last row catches many learners: 田中さんは東京に行っています means Tanaka has gone to Tokyo and is there now, not that he is on his way.
A third use is habit or repetition: 毎朝走っている (I run every morning), 銀行に勤めている (I work at a bank).
Two practical points:
- The negative of 知っている is 知らない, not 知っていない.
- In casual speech the い drops: 食べてる, 知ってる, 何してるの？ This contracted form, てる, is what you will hear in conversation and see in manga and text messages.
てある: Someone Did It on Purpose
〜てある attaches to a transitive verb and describes a state that exists because somebody deliberately created it and left it that way. The thing affected takes が (or は), even though the verb is transitive.
- 窓が開けてある — The window has been left open (someone opened it).
- 名前が書いてある — There is a name written on it.
- ビールが冷やしてある — The beer has been chilled (and is ready).
Compare 窓が開いている (the window is open — a plain description) with 窓が開けてある (the window has been opened for a reason). The verb pairs behind this contrast are the subject of Transitive and Intransitive Verb Pairs.
ておく: Getting Ready, or Leaving Things Be
〜ておく (literally "do and put") means doing something now for a later purpose:
- 切符を買っておく — to buy the tickets in advance
- ホテルを予約しておいた — I booked a hotel ahead of time.
- 晩ご飯を作っておくね — I'll make dinner (so it's ready when you get back).
It also means leaving a situation as it is:
In speech 〜ておく contracts to 〜とく: 買っとく, やっとく, 調べとくね.
てしまう: Finished, or Regrettably Done
〜てしまう has two flavors, and context usually makes clear which is meant.
Completion — the action is carried through to the end:
- 本を全部読んでしまった — I finished reading the whole book.
- 宿題を先にやってしまおう — Let's get the homework out of the way first.
Regret or accident — something happened that the speaker did not want:
The casual contraction is 〜ちゃう (from 〜てしまう) and 〜じゃう (from 〜でしまう): 忘れちゃった, 食べちゃった, 死んじゃった. Use the full form in polite and written Japanese.
てみる: Give It a Try
〜てみる ("do and see") means doing something to find out what happens:
- 食べてみる — to try (eating) it
- 先生に聞いてみます — I'll ask the teacher and see.
- この靴、履いてみてもいいですか — May I try these shoes on?
Common patterns are 〜てみたい (I'd like to try...), 〜てみたら？ (why don't you try...?), and 〜てみてください (please try...).
ていく and てくる: Direction in Space and Time
いく and くる keep their sense of movement away from or toward the speaker, but the movement can be physical or in time.
Physical direction:
- 傘を持っていく — to take an umbrella (along with you)
- 傘を持ってくる — to bring an umbrella
- 友達を連れてきた — I brought a friend.
- 父は夜遅く帰ってきた — My father came home late at night.
Go, do, and come back: 〜てくる after an action means going to do it and returning: パンを買ってくる (I'll go get some bread). This is the くる in 行ってきます, said when leaving the house.
Change over time: 〜てくる describes a change that has developed up to now; 〜ていく describes one that continues from now on.
- 暖かくなってきた — It has gotten warmer (recently).
- 日本語が分かってきた — I've begun to understand Japanese.
- 人口は減っていくだろう — The population will keep decreasing.
- これからも勉強を続けていきます — I will keep on studying.
Emergence: 〜てくる also marks something appearing or starting: 雨が降ってきた (it has started to rain), 眠くなってきた (I'm getting sleepy).
Tips for Learners
- Let the verb decide what ている means. Ask whether the verb describes an activity (read, run, wait) or an instant change (die, marry, open). Activities give "is doing"; changes give "is in the state of having done."
- Learn the contractions as vocabulary. てる (ている), とく (ておく), and ちゃう/じゃう (てしまう/でしまう) are the forms you will actually hear.
- Watch the particles. A transitive verb with てある takes が on the thing affected: 鍵がかけてある (the door has been locked).
- Keep helpers in kana. 持って行く may be written with the kanji when the going is literal, but the helper uses in this article are normally written in kana: なっていく, 分かってくる.
- Read the entries. Each helper has its own dictionary entry with more examples; the verbs in the table above carry notes on what ている means for them.