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JLPT N5Expressions

てもいい— Giving/Asking Permission

Attaching もいい to a て-form makes a permission pattern: "May I ~?" or "You may ~". It literally means "even if [action] happens, it's fine."

Grammar path · 練習

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A short lesson: the pattern, its sentence anatomy, a quick quiz and a sentence to build.

Pro lessonUNIT 11 · EXPRESSIONS

Structure · 形

[Verb te-form] + もいい (です / か)

Examples · 例文

  • これを食べてもいいですか？

    Kore o tabete mo ii desu ka?

    May I eat this?

    食べて (eat) + も (even if) + いいですか (is it good?).

  • ここで休んでもいいですよ。

    Koko de yasunde mo ii desu yo.

    You may rest here.

    A statement granting permission.

  • テレビを見てもいい？

    Terebi o mite mo ii?

    Can I watch TV?

    Casual inquiry (dropping です/か).

Usage notes · 注意

  • Casual Trim: in casual speech も and です are often dropped — これ食べていい？.
  • Natural Reply: rather than はい、いいです, native speakers answer permission requests with ええ、どうぞ (go ahead) or もちろん (of course).

Commonly confused with

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

vsてはいけない (prohibition)

てもいい GRANTS permission ("you may ~"); てはいけない (casual ちゃだめ) FORBIDS ("you must not ~"). Direct opposites.

vsなくてもいい (no need to)

てもいい = it's OK to DO it; なくてもいい = it's OK NOT to do it (you don't have to). 食べてもいい vs 食べなくてもいい.

vsなければならない (obligation)

てもいい = optional permission; なければならない = obligation ("must do"). Permission vs requirement.

More expressions

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