N5 · Unit 4
Lesson 14Do one action, then the next
Build the verb linking form, connect actions in order, and make a polite request.
What you learn
Build the verb linking form, connect actions in order, and make a polite request.
Learning points
- Verb linking forms
- Action sequence
- Polite requests and routes
Why this lesson comes now
This lesson connects what you can already say to a new way of expressing it. Hear the key sentences, understand the structure, then use it in a real situation.
Your next step
Listen to the key sentences, understand the pattern, finish the examples and vocabulary, then continue to the next lesson.
Open the interactive lessonCore pattern
動詞て、動詞ます ・ 動詞て ください ・ 場所を 通ります / 渡りますBeginner explanation
The verb て-form can link actions in sequence. Use 〜てください for a polite request. When moving through a road, bridge, park, or similar space, mark the route with を.
Understand these sentences first
- 朝ご飯を 食べて、会社へ 行きます。asagohan o tabete, kaisha e ikimasu
I eat breakfast and then go to work.
- この 紙に 名前を 書いて ください。kono kami ni namae o kaite kudasai
Please write your name on this paper.
- まっすぐ 行って、右へ 曲がって ください。massugu itte, migi e magatte kudasai
Go straight and then turn right, please.
- 橋を 渡って、公園へ 行きます。hashi o watatte, kōen e ikimasu
I cross the bridge and go to the park.
Core vocabulary
- 曲がりますまがりますturn
- 渡りますわたりますcross
- 通りますとおりますpass through
- 書きますかきますwrite
- 待ちますまちますwait
- 見せますみせますshow
- 紙かみpaper
- 名前なまえname
Grammar, one point at a time
The verb te-form changes by class and final sound
Vます → Vて／VでFor Group 1 verbs, the final stem sound changes: き→いて, ぎ→いで, び／み／に→んで, ち／り／い→って, and し→して. 行きます is exceptional: 行って. Group 2 removes ます and adds て. 来ます becomes 来て and します becomes して.
Examples
- 書きます → 書いてwrite → te-form
- 読みます → 読んでread → te-form
- 買います → 買ってbuy → te-form
- 話します → 話してspeak → te-form
The te-form links actions in time order
V1て、V2て、V3ますPut earlier actions in the te-form; the final verb determines tense and politeness for the sentence. Usually link two or three actions and use それから to start a new sentence when the chain becomes long.
Examples
- 図書館へ 行って、本を 借りて、家へ 帰ります。I go to the library, borrow a book, and return home.
- 昨日 デパートへ 行って、買い物しました。Yesterday I went to a department store and shopped.
Vてから emphasizes completing the first action before the second
V1てから、V2This more clearly marks after completing V1 than a simple te-form sequence. Avoid repeating many てから chains in one sentence; split a complex process into sentences.
Examples
- ご飯を 食べてから、出かけます。I will go out after eating.
- 家へ 帰ってから、もう一度 勉強します。I will study again after returning home.
Vてください makes a direct polite request
Vて くださいPut the requested action in the te-form and add ください. It suits a clear action. With strangers, customers, or seniors, softer てくださいませんか may be appropriate. Prohibition, permission, and other politeness levels use separate patterns.
Examples
- ここに 住所を 書いてください。Please write your address here.
- この 荷物を 航空便で 送ってください。Please send this parcel by air mail.
Mark a route or space passed through with を
place を 通ります／渡ります／過ぎますを marks not only an action object but also the space traversed in movement. Common verbs include 通ります, 渡ります, 過ぎます, and 歩きます. A destination still takes へ or に.
Examples
- この バスは 駅前を 通ります。This bus passes the station area.
- 橋を 渡ってください。Please cross the bridge.
A place left behind can also take を
place を 出ます／降ります／卒業しますWhen leaving a home, company, vehicle, or school, を marks the place left behind: 家を出ます, バスを降ります, or 大学を卒業します. This is distinct from an action object.
Examples
- 毎朝 7時に 家を 出ます。I leave home at seven every morning.
- 次の 駅で 電車を 降ります。I get off the train at the next station.
Expressions and situations
Use それから to restart after two or three linked actions
A long te-form chain becomes hard to follow. State one group of actions and introduce the next with それから to preserve order without piling up clauses.
- 図書館へ 行って、勉強します。それから、家へ 帰って 手紙を 書きます。I go to the library and study. Then I return home and write a letter.
Noun + します forms an action and often alternates with noun + を + します
買い物します and 買い物をします, or 勉強します and 勉強をします, are both possible. Collocation and nuance vary; not every noun freely combines with します.
- 午後 買い物を します。I will go shopping in the afternoon.
駅前 means the station area; 駅の前 is directly in front
駅前 is a general place concept covering shops, plazas, and roads around a station. Use 駅の前 for the physical position directly in front.
- 駅前に 銀行が あります。There is a bank in the station area.
- 駅の 前で 待ちます。I will wait directly in front of the station.
なかなか + affirmative means impressively better than expected
なかなかいい means quite good and often implies better than expected. Directly evaluating a senior's ability can sound patronizing. With a negative it can also mean not easily, a later use.
- この 記事は なかなか いいです。This article is quite good.
てくださいませんか is softer than てください
This negative-question form asks whether the listener would be willing to act and is suitable for a polite request. The burden and relationship still matter; a major imposition is not made polite by grammar alone.
- 後で 写真も 見てくださいませんか。Could you look at the photos later as well?
もう + non-past can mean soon or about to
もう帰りました means already returned. Depending on context, もう帰ります means about to leave or return. Read the verb tense and time context rather than memorizing one translation.
- もう 会社を 出ますか。Are you leaving the office now?
すみませんが before a request acknowledges the imposition
Here it means excuse me for the trouble, not admitting a serious fault. Close family members do not need it every time; it is common in public and workplace settings.
- すみませんが、この 書類を コピーしてください。Excuse me, please copy this document.
そうしてください uses そう to refer to the method just proposed
When the other person has already proposed a complete method such as express delivery or turning on a light, そう avoids repetition. Repeat the key action if the reference could be ambiguous.
- 速達で 出しますか。— ええ、そうしてください。Shall I send it express? — Yes, please do that.
お金を下ろします means withdraw money from an account
下ろします can mean take something down. With お金 it means withdraw money from a bank or postal account. Follow the ATM's displayed options and fee rules.
- 銀行で お金を 下ろします。I withdraw money at the bank.
What you should be able to do
- Convert masu-forms to the correct te-form by class and mark the 行きます exception.
- Link two or three actions with the te-form and split longer sequences with それから.
- Distinguish simple sequence て from completion-focused てから.
- Rewrite direct requests with てください and softer てくださいませんか.
- Distinguish object を, route を, and departure-point を.
- Complete an original mailing task: write an address, choose a service, confirm the postal code, and make a polite request.
Culture and real use
Japanese postcodes have seven digits and allow limited address omission when accurate
Japan Post states that a postcode is a seven-digit number used for mail sorting. With an accurate postcode, prefecture and municipality names can normally be omitted, but the town-area details and below must still be written. High-volume organizations can apply for an individual postcode, generally when they receive at least 50 qualifying letters or postcards per day on average, with exceptions such as post-office boxes and some Yu-Pack handling. Japan Post also has a separate Digital Address service using seven alphanumeric characters for a full address; it is not a postcode. Check the current Japan Post search service before mailing.
- 郵便番号を 確認してください。Please check the postal code.
- ここに 住所と 名前を 書いてください。Please write the address and name here.
- 速達で 送ってくださいませんか。Could you send it by express mail?