The て-form of verbs and linking expressions

て-form (～て形) of verbs

The て-form (て形, te-form) is used to connect a verb to another verb and to patterns such as ～ください, ～ている, and ～てから. How it is formed depends on its group:

• Group I (godan): the endings う・つ・る become って (会う→会って, 持つ→持って, 乗る→乗って); く becomes いて (書く→書いて; 行く→行って is an exception); ぐ becomes いで (泳ぐ→泳いで); す becomes して (話す→話して); む・ぶ・ぬ become んで (読む→読んで, 遊ぶ→遊んで, 死ぬ→死んで).
• Group II (ichidan): drop る and add て (食べる→食べて, 見る→見て).
• Irregular: する→して, 来る→きて.

Main functions in a sentence:

• Sequence of actions — two actions done by the same subject and occurring in order are linked with て. Example: 本屋で本を買って、家に帰りました (bought a book at the bookstore and then went home).
• Sequence of actions with the resulting state — て can also link an action to a description of a feeling or state. Example: 野菜をゆでて、やわらかくなりました (boiled the vegetables and they became soft).
• Cause of a feeling — the passive verb in the て-form is used to express that a feeling arises because something was experienced. Example: 先生にほめられて、うれしかったです (I was happy because the teacher praised me).
• Two ongoing activities — て links two routine activities. Example: 店でパンを作って、お客さんに売っています (makes bread at the shop and sells it to customers).
• Polite request — the pattern ～てください (please do ...) is discussed in a separate section, but the verb before ください always takes the て-form. Example: ここに住所を書いてください (please write your address here).
• ～ていく pattern — the て-form followed by いく expresses an action that is carried along or done on the way while going somewhere. Example: 弁当を持っていきます (take the lunch box along and go).
• ～てから pattern — used to express the order 'after doing A, then B'. Example: 手を洗ってから、昼ごはんを食べます (after washing my hands, I eat lunch).
• Word order in a sentence — time and place expressions usually come at the beginning, the object is placed before the verb, and the predicate comes at the end of the sentence. Example: 毎朝、顔を洗います (every morning, I wash my face).

Bentuk ～ている (keadaan berlangsung)

The pattern ～ている is formed from the て-form of a verb plus いる. This pattern has several meanings:

• Action in progress — used for an activity happening at the time of speaking, usually with the time word いま (now). Example: 今、音楽を聞いています (now I am listening to music).
• Action in progress in the past — the form ていました is used to express an activity that was ongoing at a certain time in the past. The word ずっと (for a long time) is often used with this pattern. Example: 雨の日、駅でずっと待っていました (on a rainy day, I waited at the station for a long time).
• Possession or state — some verbs such as 持つ (to have) use ～ている to express a state that currently holds, not an action. Example: 妹は自転車を持っています (my younger sister has a bicycle).
• Negative and past forms of possession — 持っていません means 'do not have', while 持っていました means 'used to have'. Choose the form that matches the state described in the sentence.
• Answers to yes/no questions — a question with ～ていますか is answered with はい、～ています or いいえ、～ていません.

Note: いる used as a verb of existence for living things is not the same as the ～ている pattern; the word いる in this pattern is a marker of a state.

Permintaan ～てください・～ないでください

The pattern ～てください (please do ...) is used to politely ask the listener to do something. The verb is changed to the て-form and followed by ください. Example: この紙に名前を書いてください (please write your name on this paper).