Japanese Verb Practice from ます to Dictionary and て Forms
おきます can be 起きます (“get up”) or 置きます (“put something down”). The first becomes 起きる (おきる) and 起きて (おきて). The second becomes 置く (おく) and 置いて (おいて). In kana, the polite forms look identical. Use the sentence to figure out which verb you have, then use its group to change the ending.
The dictionary form is the form you look up in a dictionary. The て form also includes forms ending in で, such as 読んで (よんで). You can use it with ください to make a request, as in 読んでください (“please read”). Japan Foundation’s dictionary-form guide · Japan Foundation’s examples with てください
From ます to both forms
Group 2 (ichidan). Swap ます for る to get the dictionary form or て to get the て form. 教えます (おしえます, “teach”) gives 教える (おしえる) and 教えて (おしえて). 見ます (みます, “see”) is also Group 2. It has the same みます ending as 読みます (よみます, “read”), which is Group 1. Learn the group along with each verb.
Group 1 (godan). Drop ます, then replace the last kana using the chart. For 呼びます (よびます, “call someone over”), start with よび. Change び to ぶ for 呼ぶ (よぶ), or replace び with んで for 呼んで (よんで).
| Kana before ます | Dictionary ending | て-form ending |
|---|---|---|
| い | う | って |
| ち | つ | って |
| り | る | って |
| に | ぬ | んで |
| び | ぶ | んで |
| み | む | んで |
| き | く | いて |
| ぎ | ぐ | いで |
| し | す | して |
行きます (いきます, “go”) follows Group 1 for the dictionary form, 行く (いく). Its て form is 行って (いって). Compare it with the regular 書きます → 書く → 書いて (かきます → かく → かいて). Irodori conjugation chart
Hold the t for an extra beat in いって. Small っ reading and spelling practice
Group 3 (irregular). します (“do”) gives する and して. The same change works in 勉強します (べんきょうします, “study”), giving 勉強する and 勉強して. 来ます (きます, “come”) gives 来る (くる) and 来て (きて). Watch the reading of 来 as you switch forms. Japan Foundation’s verb conjugation reference
Round 1. Write both forms
Write the dictionary form and the て form in kana for each verb. The group is given. Try a few without the chart, then check where you got stuck.
- 洗います (あらいます, wash), Group 1
- 見ます (みます, see), Group 2
- 急ぎます (いそぎます, hurry), Group 1
- 待ちます (まちます, wait), Group 1
- 書きます (かきます, write), Group 1
- 行きます (いきます, go), Group 1
- 読みます (よみます, read), Group 1
- 話します (はなします, speak), Group 1
- 寝ます (ねます, go to bed), Group 2
- 勉強します (べんきょうします, study), Group 3
Round 2. Use the sentence to pick the verb
Use each sentence to work out what the bold verb means. Write both forms in kana and name the group. Add the kanji if you know them. Some answers share the same kana.
- コップをここにおきます。 (I’ll put the cup here.)
- 日曜日は八時におきます。 (I get up at eight on Sundays.)
- このシャツをきます。 (I’ll wear this shirt.)
- あした、友だちがきます。 (A friend is coming tomorrow.)
- 紙を切ります。 (I’ll cut the paper. 切ります is read きります.) Compare its dictionary and て forms with the ones you wrote for 13.
Answer key
| # | Dictionary form | て form | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 洗う (あらう) | 洗って (あらって) | い becomes う or って. |
| 2 | 見る (みる) | 見て (みて) | Group 2 keeps み and replaces ます. |
| 3 | 急ぐ (いそぐ) | 急いで (いそいで) | ぎ becomes ぐ or いで. Keep the voiced で. |
| 4 | 待つ (まつ) | 待って (まって) | ち becomes つ or って. |
| 5 | 書く (かく) | 書いて (かいて) | Regular Group 1 き becomes く or いて. |
| 6 | 行く (いく) | 行って (いって) | The dictionary form follows the usual き → く pattern. The て form has って. |
| 7 | 読む (よむ) | 読んで (よんで) | み becomes む or んで. Compare this with 見ます in 2. |
| 8 | 話す (はなす) | 話して (はなして) | し becomes す or して. |
| 9 | 寝る (ねる) | 寝て (ねて) | Group 2 keeps ね and replaces ます. |
| 10 | 勉強する (べんきょうする) | 勉強して (べんきょうして) | Keep 勉強 and change します to する or して. |
| 11 | 置く (おく) | 置いて (おいて) | The cup is being put somewhere. Use Group 1 置きます and change き to く or いて. |
| 12 | 起きる (おきる) | 起きて (おきて) | Eight o’clock is the time the speaker gets up. Use Group 2 起きます and keep おき. |
| 13 | 着る (きる) | 着て (きて) | The shirt is being worn. Use Group 2 着ます and keep き. |
| 14 | 来る (くる) | 来て (きて) | A friend is coming. Use Group 3 来ます. 来て and 着て share the kana きて. Their dictionary forms use different kana. |
| 15 | 切る (きる) | 切って (きって) | “Cut” is Group 1. The dictionary forms 切る and 着る share the kana きる. The て form for “cut” has a small っ. |
When you miss an item, check whether you chose the wrong verb, used the wrong group, or slipped on the ending. Try it again tomorrow. Pulling the answer from memory after a gap helps you remember it longer. For more spaced practice, the companion deck has 54 cards, each asking for one form and giving an English cue and the Japanese reading. Japanese verb form flashcards with English cues
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