てくれる — Someone Does a Favor for Me (Inward)
Used when someone does a favor for YOU or your in-group (family, company). The action flows inward from the outside to your benefit, and the giver is the grammatical subject.
Structure
[Giver] が [Verb te-form] + くれる
Examples
友達が宿題を手伝ってくれた。
Tomodachi ga shukudai o tetsudatte kureta.
My friend helped me with my homework.
手伝って (help) + くれた = did the favor inward, to my benefit
母が弁当を作ってくれた。
Haha ga bentou o tsukutte kureta.
My mother made me a lunch box.
作って + くれた = favor done by family for me
田中さんは何もしてくれなかった。
Tanaka-san wa nani mo shite kurenakatta.
Tanaka did nothing for me.
して + くれなかった = negative — no favor came my way
• Perspective matters: If someone does something for you, using 〜てくれる shows gratitude. Just saying 友達が手伝った (my friend helped) sounds flat and leaves out the sense of benefit. • The giver acts of their own goodwill, so they are the subject (marked with が). • In-group: use it when someone helps your child/family, since you treat them as part of your 'self'.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones てくれる is tested against.
vs てもらう
てくれる makes the GIVER the subject (友達が手伝ってくれた). てもらう makes ME the subject, receiving/soliciting the favor (私は友達に手伝ってもらった).
vs てあげる
てあげる is the outward direction — I/we do a favor for someone else. てくれる is inward — someone does a favor for me/my group.
More giving & receiving
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