Giving and Receiving: Direction Matters｜あげる・くれる
In Japanese, verbs of giving change strictly depending on who gives and who receives. You cannot freely choose any verb. Use あげる when giving outward to others. Use くれる when someone gives inward to you (or your family/group). Understanding this psychological perspective is the key to natural Japanese conversation.
物をあげたり、もらったりするときに『あげる』と『くれる』を使います。だれからだれへ動くかの視点に注意して練習しましょう。
Giving outward to others: あげる
あげる indicates movement outward from the speaker (or someone close) to another person: 私 → 友だち. You can never use あげる when someone gives something to you. For example, say 友だちにプレゼントをあげました (I gave a present to my friend).
『あげる』は自分から他の人へ物を渡すときに使います。他の人が自分にくれるときに『あげる』は使えません。
Giving inward to me: くれる
くれる indicates movement inward toward the speaker: 他の人 → 私. The giver is marked with が. Because the destination is always "me," the phrase 私に is typically omitted (e.g. 兄がお守りをくれました).
『くれる』は他の人が自分に物をくれるときに使います。『私に』は言わなくても相手に伝わります。
Difference from もらう
Both くれる and もらう involve receiving, but their viewpoint differs. With もらう, the receiver is the topic (私は田中さんにもらいました). With くれる, the giver is the topic/subject (田中さんが私にくれました), highlighting gratitude toward the giver.
『もらう』はもらう人が主語になります。『くれる』はくれる人が主語になり、感謝の気持ちが強く表れます。
Doing favors: 〜てあげる / 〜てくれる
These verbs can combine with te-form actions: 教えてあげる (do someone a favor by teaching them) vs 教えてくれる (someone kindly teaches me).
親切な行いにも『〜てあげる』『〜てくれる』を使えます。
Examples / 例
The following scenes and exercises were written for this lesson. They do not describe an actual service or event.
私は誕生日に友だちへ本をあげました。
I gave a book to my friend on their birthday.
The speaker gives a gift outward to a friend.
先輩がかわいいお土産をくれました。
My senior coworker gave me a cute souvenir.
A colleague kindly gives something to the speaker.
母がこの時計をくれました。
My mother gave me this watch.
Expressing a treasured gift received from family.
同僚にコーヒーをいれてあげましょう。
Let's make coffee for our coworker.
Offering a kind action outward to a colleague.
Practice / 練習
Read each situation. Say your answer before opening “Answer and explanation.”
Q1. Tanaka-san gave you a nice pen: 田中さんが（あげました／くれました）。
Answer and explanation
くれました
When someone gives something to you, always use くれました.
Q2. You gave flowers to your teacher: 先生に花を（あげました／くれました）。
Answer and explanation
あげました
When the speaker gives outward to another person, use あげました.
Q3. Can you say: "友だちが私にプレゼントをあげました"? (Yes / No)
Answer and explanation
いいえ、言えません。
No. Another person giving to you must be くれました, never あげました.
Q4. In the sentence "兄がこのチケットをくれました", who received the ticket?
Answer and explanation
話し手（私）
The speaker (私) is the implied receiver in くれました.
Words / 言葉
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 視点 | viewpoint; perspective |
| 誕生日 | birthday |
| 先輩 | senior colleague |
| 同僚 | coworker; colleague |
| お土産 | souvenir; gift |
A phrase to use
これは、国の友だちがくれたお守りです。
This is a lucky amulet that my friend from my home country gave me.
Sources
Grammar reference: The Japan Foundation, Irodori: Japanese for Life in Japan. The explanations here are concise original summaries; examples and practice questions are original.
Official Irodori Elementary 1 download page · Official Irodori Elementary 2 download page