聞(き)かせる

きかせる
verb (ichidan)
to tell; to let someone hear; to recite
他動詞 transitivecommunication
See also: 聞(き)かす (variant form), 聞(き)く (base verb)
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Present聞(き)かせる聞(き)かせない
Present polite聞(き)かせます聞(き)かせません
Past聞(き)かせた聞(き)かせなかった
Past polite聞(き)かせました聞(き)かせませんでした
て form聞(き)かせて聞(き)かせなくて
ている present聞(き)かせている聞(き)かせていない
ている polite聞(き)かせています聞(き)かせていません
ている past聞(き)かせていた聞(き)かせていなかった
ている past polite聞(き)かせていました聞(き)かせていませんでした
Conditional ば聞(き)かせれば聞(き)かせなければ
Conditional たら聞(き)かせたら聞(き)かせなかったら
Volitional聞(き)かせよう—
Volitional polite聞(き)かせましょう—
Potential聞(き)かせられる聞(き)かせられない
Passive聞(き)かせられる聞(き)かせられない
Causative聞(き)かせさせる聞(き)かせさせない
Imperative聞(き)かせろ聞(き)かせるな
1. to tell; to let someone hear; to read aloud to
To convey information or a story to someone by speaking. Often used for telling stories, reading aloud, or sharing news.
To read a picture book aloud to a child.
Please tell me about your trip.
It's my daily routine to tell the children folk tales before bed.
2. to play (music) for someone; to perform for someone to hear
To play music or sing so that someone can listen and appreciate it.
新曲(しんきょく)を聞(き)かせる。
To play a new song for someone.
Someday I want to let lots of people hear my songs.

The causative form of 聞(き)く (to hear/listen), used as an independent verb meaning to let someone hear or to tell someone something. Unlike the grammatical causative, 聞(き)かせる is commonly treated as its own word with a nuance of sharing or performing.

Common collocations

Common patterns

Similar words

  • 話(はな)す: to speak, to tell — neutral, no emphasis on the listener's experience
  • 語(かた)る: to narrate, to tell — more literary, for longer stories
  • 伝(つた)える: to convey, to communicate — focuses on the information being transmitted