あげる／くれる／もらう – Giving and Receiving in Japanese [JLPT N5]

Quick Summary

• Meaning: あげる (ageru), くれる (kureru), and もらう (morau) are verbs that show who gives and who receives something.
• How to Use: Choose the verb based on the direction of the action: giving out from you (あげる), giving to you (くれる), or you receiving (もらう).

Example:

• おばあさんはロボットにケーキをあげます。
• Obaasan wa robotto ni keeki o agemasu.
• Grandma gives a cake to the robot.

Overview

In English, we usually say just “give” and “receive.” In Japanese, there are special verbs that also show the relationship and direction between people:

• あげる (ageru) – “to give” something from the speaker or the speaker’s side to someone else.
• くれる (kureru) – “to give” something to the speaker or someone close to the speaker.
• もらう (morau) – “to receive” something.

The important idea is not only “who gives what,” but also who you feel close to. In this article, we will focus on the most basic, polite patterns, and on how to choose between these three verbs correctly at JLPT N5 level.

Imagine there is a little arrow:

• With あげる, the arrow goes from you (or your side) → out to another person.
• With くれる, the arrow comes from someone else → to you (or your side).
• With もらう, the arrow is also toward you, but the focus is on you receiving, not on the person who gives.

Because of this “arrow,” the same situation can be said in different ways depending on your point of view. For example, if your friend hands you a banana during class:

• あきらさんはバナナをくれました。 (Akira-san wa banana o kuremashita., Akira gave me a banana.) – focus on Akira giving “to me.”
• 私はあきらさんからバナナをもらいました。 (Watashi wa Akira-san kara banana o moraimashita., I received a banana from Akira.) – focus on you receiving.

Both are correct; they simply highlight different sides of the same action.

Structure / Formation

Basic Patterns

Here are the most useful basic formulas for beginners. We will use:

• Person – the giver or receiver
• N – a noun (thing you give)

あげる – to give (out from me / my side)

• Person は Person に N を あげる

This pattern is used when the giver is you or someone close to you (your friend, family, etc.), and the receiver is someone outside your group.

Example:

• 私はかいじゅうにプレゼントをあげます。
• Watashi wa kaijuu ni purezento o agemasu.
• I give a present to the monster.

くれる – to give (to me / my side)

• Person は 私 / 私の友だち に N を くれる

Use くれる when the receiver is you or someone close to you (your family, friends, pets, etc.). The focus is that the action comes toward you.

Example:

• 宇宙人は私にへんな本をくれました。
• Uchuujin wa watashi ni hen na hon o kuremashita.
• An alien gave me a strange book.

もらう – to receive

• Person は Person から N を もらう
• Person は Person に N を もらう (から and に are both possible; から is a bit clearer as “from” for beginners.)

Use もらう when you talk from the side of the receiver. Very often, the receiver is you.

Example:

• 私はねこからラブレターをもらいました。
• Watashi wa neko kara raburetaa o moraimashita.
• I received a love letter from a cat.

Polite Forms and Conjugation

At JLPT N5 level, you will mostly use the polite ます forms. Here is a quick mini-table:

Dictionary form (V-る)	Polite non-past (V-ま)	Polite past (V-た)	Polite negative
あげる	あげます	あげました	あげません
くれる	くれます	くれました	くれません
もらう	もらいます	もらいました	もらいません

With these forms, you can already talk about many real-life (and not-so-real-life) situations:

• 先生は私にテストをくれました。 – The teacher gave me a test.
• 私は先生からテストをもらいました。 – I received a test from the teacher.
• 私はロボットにお茶をあげません。 – I do not give tea to the robot.

(Romaji and translations will be shown in the detailed examples section later.)

Who Is “Inside” and “Outside” Your Group?

A key idea for あげる and くれる is the difference between your “inside group” and “outside group.”

• Inside group: you, your family, close friends, your pets, your team, etc.
• Outside group: teacher, boss, strangers, people you are talking about but not close to.

Some simple beginner rules:

• When your inside group gives to an outside person → あげる
• When someone gives to you or your inside group → くれる
• When you want to say “I / we received” → usually もらう

Example (same situation, different viewpoint):

• 友だちは先生にクッキーをあげました。 – My friend gave cookies to the teacher.
• 先生は友だちにえんぴつをくれました。 – The teacher gave a pencil to my friend.

Particles with Giving and Receiving Verbs

These patterns will cover most beginner sentences:

• Person は – topic (giver or receiver, depending on the verb)
• Person に – “to Person” (receiver for あげる / くれる, giver for some もらう patterns)
• Person から – “from Person” (giver for もらう)
• N を – the thing you give or receive

Core patterns to remember:

• Person は Person に N を あげる
• Person は Person に N を くれる
• Person は Person から N を もらう

Once these feel natural, you will be ready for the next step: using these verbs with actions (V-てあげる, V-てくれる, V-てもらう). But for now, focus on getting comfortable with the basic “give a thing / receive a thing” patterns and choosing the right verb depending on who is giving and who is receiving.

Example Sentences

• 私は火星人にピザをあげます。
• Watashi wa Kaseijin ni piza o agemasu.
• I give pizza to a Martian.

• ロボットは私にへんな日本語の歌をくれました。
• Robotto wa watashi ni hen na Nihongo no uta o kuremashita.
• The robot gave me a strange Japanese song.

• 私はうさぎからラーメンのチケットをもらいました。
• Watashi wa usagi kara raamen no chiketto o moraimashita.
• I received a ramen ticket from a rabbit.

• おばあさんはドラゴンにメガネをあげました。
• Obaasan wa doragon ni megane o agemashita.
• Grandma gave glasses to a dragon.

• 昨日、私はゆうれいに日本語のかみをもらいませんでした。
• Kinou, watashi wa yuurei ni Nihongo no kami o moraimasen deshita.
• Yesterday, I did not receive a Japanese worksheet from the ghost.

Quick Practice

(Answers and explanations are right under this section.)

Multiple-Choice

1. Choose the best sentence: “I give a sandwich to the dinosaur.”

• A. 私は恐竜にサンドイッチをあげます。(Watashi wa kyouryuu ni sandoicchi o agemasu.)
• B. 私は恐竜にサンドイッチをくれます。(Watashi wa kyouryuu ni sandoicchi o kuremasu.)
• C. 私は恐竜とサンドイッチをあげます。(Watashi wa kyouryuu to sandoicchi o agemasu.)
• D. 私は恐竜やサンドイッチをもらいます。(Watashi wa kyouryuu ya sandoicchi o moraimasu.)

2. Choose the correct Japanese for “Grandpa gave me a watch.”

• A. おじいさんは私に時計をあげました。(Ojiisan wa watashi ni tokei o agemashita.)
• B. おじいさんは私に時計をくれました。(Ojiisan wa watashi ni tokei o kuremashita.)
• C. 私はおじいさんに時計をくれました。(Watashi wa ojiisan ni tokei o kuremashita.)
• D. おじいさんは私から時計をもらいました。(Ojiisan wa watashi kara tokei o moraimashita.)

3. Choose the best sentence: “I received a manga from my teacher.”

• A. 私は先生からマンガをもらいました。(Watashi wa sensei kara manga o moraimashita.)
• B. 私は先生にマンガをあげました。(Watashi wa sensei ni manga o agemashita.)
• C. 先生は私からマンガをもらいました。(Sensei wa watashi kara manga o moraimashita.)
• D. 先生は私とマンガをくれました。(Sensei wa watashi to manga o kuremashita.)

4. Choose the correct polite negative sentence: “I do not receive chocolate from the robot.”

• A. 私はロボットからチョコレートをもらいません。(Watashi wa robotto kara chokoreeto o moraimasen.)
• B. 私はロボットにチョコレートをあげません。(Watashi wa robotto ni chokoreeto o agemasen.)
• C. ロボットは私にチョコレートをくれません。(Robotto wa watashi ni chokoreeto o kuremasen.)
• D. 私はロボットでもチョコレートをもらいます。(Watashi wa robotto demo chokoreeto o moraimasu.)

5. Choose the best sentence: “Yesterday, the fairy gave my little brother a pen.”

• A. 昨日、ようせいは弟にペンをくれました。(Kinou, yousei wa otouto ni pen o kuremashita.)
• B. 昨日、ようせいは弟にペンをあげました。(Kinou, yousei wa otouto ni pen o agemashita.)
• C. 昨日、弟はようせいにペンをもらいました。(Kinou, otouto wa yousei ni pen o moraimashita.)
• D. 昨日、ようせいは弟とペンをあげました。(Kinou, yousei wa otouto to pen o agemashita.)

Spot-the-Error

6. One sentence has an error with あげる／くれる／もらう. Which sentence is wrong?

• A. 兄は友だちにゲームをあげました。(Ani wa tomodachi ni geemu o agemashita.)
• B. 魔女は私に黒い猫をくれました。(Majo wa watashi ni kuroi neko o kuremashita.)
• C. 私はドラゴンにプレゼントをもらいました。(Watashi wa doragon ni purezento o moraimashita.)

7. One sentence has an error with particles for もらう. Which sentence is wrong?

• A. 私は友だちからおもしろいメールをもらいました。(Watashi wa tomodachi kara omoshiroi meeru o moraimashita.)
• B. 私は先生に漢字のプリントをもらいました。(Watashi wa sensei ni kanji no purinto o moraimashita.)
• C. 私は犬に手紙をもらいました。(Watashi wa inu ni tegami o moraimashita.)

Translation

8. Translate into Japanese using the correct giving/receiving verb: “The alien gave me Japanese homework.”

9. Translate into Japanese using the correct giving/receiving verb: “I gave a flower to my teacher.”

10. Translate into Japanese using the correct giving/receiving verb: “I received a strange hat from the panda.”

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Answers and Explanations

1. 私は恐竜にサンドイッチをあげます。(Watashi wa kyouryuu ni sandoicchi o agemasu.) – You (the speaker) give something out to another, so あげます is correct.
2. おじいさんは私に時計をくれました。(Ojiisan wa watashi ni tokei o kuremashita.) – Someone gives something to “me,” so くれました is used.
3. 私は先生からマンガをもらいました。(Watashi wa sensei kara manga o moraimashita.) – The focus is on “I received,” so もらいました with から is correct.
4. 私はロボットからチョコレートをもらいません。(Watashi wa robotto kara chokoreeto o moraimasen.) – The English is “do not receive,” so the negative of もらう, もらいません, matches.
5. 昨日、ようせいは弟にペンをくれました。(Kinou, yousei wa otouto ni pen o kuremashita.) – The fairy gives to your inside group (little brother), so くれました is natural.
6. 私はドラゴンにプレゼントをもらいました。(Watashi wa doragon ni purezento o moraimashita.) – With もらう, the giver should be marked by から (or に in some patterns), but “from the dragon” must be clear; here に is unnatural for the giver, so this is the error.
7. 私は犬に手紙をもらいました。(Watashi wa inu ni tegami o moraimashita.) – Using に here is strange; for the giver “from the dog,” から is better (犬から), so this is the wrong sentence.
8. 宇宙人は私に日本語のしゅくだいをくれました。(Uchuujin wa watashi ni Nihongo no shukudai o kuremashita.) – Something is given to “me,” so くれました is used.
9. 私は先生に花をあげました。(Watashi wa sensei ni hana o agemashita.) – You (inside) give to the teacher (outside), so あげました fits.
10. 私はパンダからへんな帽子をもらいました。(Watashi wa panda kara hen na boushi o moraimashita.) – The focus is on “I received,” so もらいました with から is correct.