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JLPT N5Giving & Receiving

くれる— Someone Gives to Me/Us

Used when someone gives something to the speaker or the speaker's in-group. The giver is the subject, and the sentence carries a sense of gratitude for the favour.

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Pro lessonUNIT 20 · GIVING & RECEIVING

Structure · 形

[Giver]は/が （[私]に） [Thing]を くれる

Examples · 例文

  • 彼が指輪をくれました。

    Kare ga yubiwa o kuremashita.

    He gave me a ring.

    彼が (he, subject) + 指輪を (ring) + くれました — the giving is directed at me

  • 友だちがチョコレートをくれました。

    Tomodachi ga chokoreeto o kuremashita.

    My friend gave me chocolate.

    友だちが (friend, subject/giver) + チョコレートを + くれました — the giving is directed at me

  • 姉は私に古い自転車をくれた。

    Ane wa watashi ni furui jitensha o kureta.

    My older sister gave me her old bicycle.

    姉は (sister, giver) + 私に (to me) + くれた — plain past of くれる

Usage notes · 注意

  • In-group logic: くれる also covers gifts to people close to you — 'my friend gave my sister a book' uses くれる because your sister is in your in-group. • The receiver (私に) is usually dropped since くれる already implies 'to me/us'. • Humble/respectful version: くださる.

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones くれる is tested against.

vsあげる

あげる = the subject gives away (outward); くれる = someone gives TO the speaker/in-group (inward). Choose by the direction of the gift.

vsもらう

くれる makes the giver the subject ('he gave me'); もらう makes the receiver the subject ('I received from him'). Same event, different focus.

More giving & receiving

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