Grammar Info

N5 Lesson 10: 9/12

くれるTo give (me), To be given

For both くれる and あげる, に marks the recipient

Structure

Giver(*)(1) + Recipient(*) + Object(*)くれる

Recipient(*) + Giver(*)(1) + Object(*)くれる

Giver(*)(1) + Object(*) + Recipient(*)くれる

(*) Giver, Recipent and Object are Nouns
(1)

Details

  • Part of Speech

    Verb

  • Word Type

    Independent Word

  • Register

    Standard

  • Rare Kanji

    呉れる

About くれる

くれる is generally taught as part of a set of 3 verbs that are regularly used for giving and receiving in Japanese. These verbs are くれる, あげる, and もらう. くれる means 'to give' (to you, or someone that is part of your 'in' group).

With くれる and あげる, they both function in the regular way you would expect (regarding particles). This means that will always mark the giver (the person performing the action), and will mark the recipient (the person that is the 'destination' of the thing that is given). This means that will be used to mark the 'object' that is given, as is usually the case.

The giver/recipient are often omitted from sentences with くれる, as one/both are usually obvious from context, or the sentence may be focussing on the object.

As can be seen here, the same nuance is kept, even when things are omitted.

Fun Fact

What someone considers their 'in' group will be different for each person, but usually consists of members of your family, clubs that you are in, or something similar that has a 'group' atmosphere (that you are a part of).

The giver will always be someone that is more distant than the people that are in the 'group'.

  • 近所(きんじょ)(ひと)旅行(りょこう)から(かえ)()(ちち)土産(みやげ)くれ
    When the neighbors return home from traveling, they give my father souvenirs.
  • 先生(せんせい)クラブ仲間(なかま)としこちゃん(はな)くれ
    The teacher gave flowers to my club member, Toshiko-chan.

Caution

When we want to say that we (or someone else) gave something to someone that is not in our 'in' group, we will need to use あげる instead.

Examples

--:--

    (はは)(ぼく)かっこいいペンくれた

    My mom gave me a cool pen. (I was given)

    (あに)((わたし))便利(べんり)(はこ)くれた

    My brother gave me a convenient box. (I was given)

    おじいちゃん((わたし))(ふる)自転車(じてんしゃ)くれた

    My grandpa gave me an old bicycle. (I was given)

    (かれ)((わたし))かわい(くつ)くれて(うれ)です

    He gave me some cute shoes, so I am happy. (I was given)

    友達(ともだち)毎週(まいしゅう)土曜日(どようび)(わたし)(はは)クッキーくれる

    My friend gives my mom cookies every Saturday. (My mom is given)

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      くれる – Grammar Discussion

      Most Recent Replies (16 in total)

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        to give (me), to be given

        Structure

        • Giverは・が + Recipientに + Nounを くれる
        • Recipientに + Giverは・が + Nounを くれる
        • Giverは・が + Nounを + Recipientに くれる

        View on Bunpro

        For both くれる and あげる, に marks the recipient. If you want to express act of giving something to someone outside of your inner circle use あげるinstead.

        [くれる describes something being given to you or someone inside your inner circle from someone outside it]
        [くれる → To give towards the speaker・あげる → To give away from the s...

      • hotyaznboi

        hotyaznboi

        I’m confused by one of the example sentences where くれて is used instead of the expected くれる. I don’t see any info on when to use くれて in the grammar point or in the readings. Perhaps some more info is needed here or am I missing some important lesson somewhere? I didn’t know the Te-form could be used as a conjunction in this manner.

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        @hotyaznboi Thank you for your feedback. We do not currently have a lesson dedicated to the conjunctive て-form, but it is something that we plan to add in the future. Since くれる is followed immediately by うれしい, we need a conjunction (くれて) here. If うれしいです was a separate sentence, くれた would be acceptable. However, since the following sentence (うれしいです) is polite, くれました would be the more appropriate choice. I have updated the example sentence information to include a note on the conjunctive. Cheers!

      • omegazion

        omegazion

        The sentence & the orange hint should be reversed.
        “My friend gave me X” is the more natural translation and the thought that one would want to express. It also makes me think about the directionality of くれる instead of just associating “was given” = くれる

      • mrnoone

        mrnoone

        Hey
        “X gave me Y” is the main translation

      • max99x

        max99x

        Is “元気をくれる” a set expression? The current translation of “give me energy” doesn’t make sense to me in English. Does the whole sentence " 彼が(私に)元気をくれた" mean “He cheered me up.”?

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        @max99x

        That’s right! 元気 is one of many Japanese words that is difficult to construe in English without losing its intended meaning. The reason that we decided to go with the more literal translation here was to make it easier to produce the grammar point in question. I have updated the sentence to include the “He cheered me up.” translation to hopefully clear up any future confusion. Cheers!

      • Joluju

        Joluju

        How come sentence examples describe things given to me by my mom, or my elder brother, or my grandpa ? These people belong my inner circle, don’t they ? The quote says “… from someone outside it”, this clause is not satisfied, kureru should not apply then. I don’t understand.

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        @Joluju Thank you for your inquiry! Check this explanation and video out to get a better understanding of circles/social distances. Cheers!

      • deltacat3

        deltacat3

        彼女はいつも(僕に)綺麗な封筒をくれる。
        She always gives (me) pretty envelopes.

        Can くれる be changed into くれている to further emphasize a habitual action? Or is that a no, no?

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        @deltacat3

        This is not necessarily a no, no, but it is far more common to use をくれている when you are not referring to physical objects. E.g. you will often come across phrases like 愛をくれている, 元気 をくれている, or 許可 をくれている.

        It is more common to see くれている used with verbs (てくれている) when the speaker wishes to further emphasize that the action is ongoing. So, you could say 彼女はいつも(僕に)綺麗な封筒を送ってくれている to further emphasize that she is always sending me pretty envelopes.

        Cheers!

      • jrmr50

        jrmr50

        if we use て here, what puts the sentence into the past tense? Why isn’t it 'he gives some cute shoes to me, so I am happy`

        I had opted for くれた

      • FredKore

        FredKore

        The comma indicates that it has to be て-form to join with something that comes after. If you put くれた then that would be the end of the sentence.
        It’s translated as past tense because the situation is that ‘I am currently happy about something that happened’.

        The pattern is like these grammar points:
        Verb[て] + B | Japanese Grammar SRS
        てくれてありがとう | Japanese Grammar SRS
        てすみません | Japanese Grammar SRS

      • MikkaT

        MikkaT

        Hi, I saw these diagrams which helped understanding the concept better.

      • Bazza

        Bazza

        • 近所きんじょひと旅行りょこうからかえってて、ちちにお土産みやげをくれた。

        When the neighbors return home from traveling, they give my father souvenirs.

        That is one of the example sentences and its translation. I thought it was describing a one time event, because of the final くれた. The translation however says ‘give’ rather than ‘gave’, suggesting it is a habit.

        Could you confirm please?

        Thanks in advance!

      • Fuga

        Fuga

        Hey @Bazza !

        This seemed like an input error on our end so we have just fixed it!

      • Bazza

        Bazza

        Awesome - thanks for the quick work on that!

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