What does “dekakeru” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “dekakeru” to mean ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this verb as it is sometimes used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I will explain it together with its major conjugations. And also, I will explain how to use them through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to use “dekakeru” more properly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
- Definition and meanings of “dekakeru”
- Dekakenai: the nai form of “dekakeru”
- Dekakeyou: the volitional form of “dekakeru”
- Dekakemasu: the masu form of “dekakeru”
- Dekaketa: the ta form of “dekakeru”
- Dekakete: the te form of “dekakeru”
- Dekakereba: the ba form of “dekakeru”
- Summary
Definition and meanings of “dekakeru”
Let me start with the definition and meanings of “dekakeru”.
- dekakeru – 出掛ける (でかける) : a verb meaning ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese.
Native speakers use this verb when they leave home for destinations. So, this verb is a bit different from “iku” and “deru”.
The definition and meanings are not that difficult, I think. Then, let me explain how to use this verb through the example sentence below.
Example #1: how to say “go out” in Japanese
boku tachi wa tokidoki dekakeru – 僕達は時々出掛ける (ぼくたちはときどきでかける)
We sometimes go out.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males.
- tachi – 達 (たち) : a suffix used after a noun or pronoun to make its plural form. In the example, this is used after “boku” to make its plural form, “boku tachi”, which means ‘we’ in Japanese. Learn more about Japanese plural.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “boku tachi” to make the subject in the sentence.
- tokidoki – 時々 (ときどき) : an adverb of frequency meaning ‘sometimes’ in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “dekakeru”. When we want to mean ‘to go out’ in Japanese, this verb is a good option.
So far, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “dekakeru” and how to use it through the example sentence. In the rest part of this blog post, I will explain its major conjugations. The first one is “dekakenai”.
Dekakenai: the nai form of “dekakeru”
Below are the definition and meanings of “dekakenai”.
- dekakenai – 出掛けない (でかけない) : the nai form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘not to go out’ or ‘not to leave’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “dekakenai” consists of the following two parts:
- dekake – 出掛け (でかけ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “nai”.
- nai – ない : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to deny its meaning. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this auxiliary verb is very similar to that of “not”.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekakenai” is literally the nai form of “dekakeru” and means ‘not to go out’ or ‘not to leave’ in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use this nai form through the example sentence below.
Example #2: how to say “don’t go out” in Japanese
watashi no musume tachi wa zenzen dekakenai – 私の娘達は全然出掛けない (わたしのむすめたちはぜんぜんでかけない)
My daughters don’t go out at all.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
- no – の : a case particle used after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, this is used after “watashi” to make its possessive case, “watashi no“, which means ‘my’ in Japanese.
- musume – 娘 (むすめ) : a noun meaning ‘daughter’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- zenzen – 全然 (ぜんぜん) : an adverb widely used to emphasize the meaning of a negative phrase. In the example, this is translated into English as “at all”.
This is a typical usage of “dekakenai”. When we want to mean ‘not to go out’ in Japanese, this nai form is a good option.
Dekakeyou: the volitional form of “dekakeru”
Below are the definition and meanings of “dekakeyou”.
- dekakeyou – 出掛けよう (でかけよう) : the volitional form of “dekakeru”, which expresses volition to go out or leave.
Grammatically, “dekakeyou” consists of the following two parts:
- dekake – 出掛け (でかけ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “you”.
- you – よう : an auxiliary verb used after a verb to make its volitional form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekakeyou” is literally the volitional form of “dekakeru” and expresses volition to go out or leave. Then, let me explain how to use this form through the example sentence below.
Example #3: how to say “let’s go out” in Japanese
ashita dekakeyou – 明日出掛けよう (あしたでかけよう)
Let’s go out tomorrow!
Below is the new word used in the example sentence.
- ashita – 明日 (あした) : a noun meaning ‘tomorrow’ in Japanese. This can also work as an adverb almost anywhere in a sentence. In the example, this works as an adverb to say “tomorrow” in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “dekakeyou”. In this example, it works to make the suggestion. When we want to say “let’s go out” in Japanese, this volitional form is a good option.
Dekakemasu: the masu form of “dekakeru”
Below are the definition and meanings of “dekakemasu”.
- dekakemasu – 出掛けます (でかけます) : the masu form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ politely in Japanese.
Grammatically, “dekakemasu” consists of the following two parts:
- dekake – 出掛け (でかけ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “masu”.
- masu – ます : an auxiliary verb used after a verb to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese masu form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekakemasu” is literally the masu form of “dekakeru” and means ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ politely in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use this form through the example sentence below.
Example #4: how to say “go out” politely in Japanese
watashi no kareshi wa tamani yoru ni dekakemasu – 私の彼氏はたまに夜に出掛けます (わたしのかれしはたまによるにでかけます)
My boyfriend occasionally goes out at night.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kareshi – 彼氏 (かれし) : a noun meaning ‘boyfriend’ in Japanese.
- tamani – たまに : an adverb of frequency meaning ‘occasionally’ in Japanese.
- yoru – 夜 (よる) : a noun meaning ‘night’ in Japanese.
- ni – に : a case particle used to say when someone does something. In the example, this is used after “yoru” to say when the boyfriend goes out.
This is a typical usage of “dekakemasu”. Its politeness has not been reflected in the English sentence, but the Japanese sentence sounds polite thanks to the masu form. When we want to say “go out” or “leave” politely in Japanese, this form is a good option.
Dekaketa: the ta form of “dekakeru”
Below are the definition and meanings of “dekaketa”.
- dekaketa – 出掛けた (でかけた) : the ta form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘went out’ or ‘left’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “dekaketa” consists of the following two parts:
- dekake – 出掛け (でかけ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “ta”.
- ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese ta form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekaketa” is literally the ta form of “dekakeru” and means ‘went out’ or ‘left’ in Japanese. Let me explain how to use this form through the example sentence below.
Example #5: how to say “went out” in Japanese
kinou no yoru wa kanojo mo dekaketa – 昨日の夜は彼女も出掛けた (きのうのよるはかのじょもでかけた)
Last night she went out, too.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kinou – 昨日 (きのう) : a noun meaning ‘yesterday’ in Japanese.
- no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join “kinou” and “yoru”. The formed phrase literally means ‘yesterday’s night’ in Japanese. It has been translated as just ‘last night’, though.
- kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
- mo – も : a binding particle making the subject word or the object word in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘also’, ‘as well’, or ‘too’. In the example, this works after “kanojo” to make the subject in the sentence with adding the meaning of ‘too’.
This is a typical usage of “dekaketa”. When we want to use the past tense form of “dekakeru”, this ta form is the best option.
Dekakete: the te form of “dekakeru”
Below are the definition and meanings of “dekakete”.
- dekakete – 出掛けて (でかけて) : the te form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “dekakete” consists of the following two parts:
- dekake – 出掛け (でかけ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “te”.
- te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekakete” is literally the te form of “dekakeru”. In Japanese, te-formed words have some important roles. One of them is make a chronological order in a sentence. So, “dekakete” is very useful when we want to implement the order into a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘to go out’. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #6: how to say “go out and” in Japanese
kare wa dekakete sugu ie ni modoru – 彼は出掛けてすぐ家に戻る (かれはでかけてすぐいえにもどる)
He goes out and comes back home soon.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- sugu – すぐ : an adverb meaning ‘soon’ in Japanese.
- ie – 家 (いえ) : a noun meaning ‘home’ or ‘house’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- ni – に : a case particle used to say where someone or something goes. In the example, this is used after “ie” to say where “kare” comes back soon.
- modoru – 戻る (もどる) : a verb meaning ‘to come back’ or such in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “dekakete”. In this example, it makes the chronological order in the sentence. When we want to make a chronological order in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’, this te form is a good option.
Dekakereba: the ba form of “dekakeru”
Lastly, let me explain the definition and meanings of “dekakereba”.
- dekakereba – 出掛ければ (でかければ) : the ba form of “dekakeru”, which makes a conditional clause in a sentence with meaning ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “dekakereba” consists of the following two parts:
- dekakere – 出掛けれ (でかけれ) : one conjugation of “dekakeru”. This can have a smooth connection with “ba”.
- ba – ば : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its ba form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “dekakereba” is literally the ba form of “dekakeru”. In Japanese, the ba forms of words can work as their conditional forms. So, we can use “dekakereba” to make a conditional clause in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #7: how to say “if leave” in Japanese
ima dekakereba, kasa wa ira nai yo – 今出掛ければ、傘は要らないよ (いまでかければ、かさはいらないよ)
If you leave now, you don’t need an umbrella.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- ima – 今 (いま) : an adverb meaning ‘now’ in Japanese.
- kasa – 傘 (かさ) : a noun meaning ‘umbrella’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- ira – 要ら (いら) : one conjugation of the verb, “iru“, which means ‘to need’ or such in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- nai – ない : the same as used in “dekakenai”. In this example, this is used after “ira” to deny its meaning, ‘to need’.
- yo – よ : a sentence-ending particle used to state the fact or idea in a soft way. As the definition suggests, this is used at the end of the example sentence to state the speaker’s idea softly.
This is a typical usage of “dekakereba”. In this example, it works as a part of the conditional clause, “ima dekakereba”, which means ‘if you leave now’ in Japanese. When we want to make a conditional clause in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’, this ba form is a good option.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “dekakeru” and its major conjugations. And also, I’ve explained how to use them through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- dekakeru – 出掛ける (でかける) : a verb meaning ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese.
- dekakenai – 出掛けない (でかけない) : the nai form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘not to go out’ or ‘not to leave’ in Japanese.
- dekakeyou – 出掛けよう (でかけよう) : the volitional form of “dekakeru”, which expresses volition to go out or leave.
- dekakemasu – 出掛けます (でかけます) : the masu form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ politely in Japanese.
- dekaketa – 出掛けた (でかけた) : the ta form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘went out’ or ‘left’ in Japanese.
- dekakete – 出掛けて (でかけて) : the te form of “dekakeru”, which means ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese. When we want to make a chronological order in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’, this te form is a good option.
- dekakereba – 出掛ければ (でかければ) : the ba form of “dekakeru”, which makes a conditional clause in a sentence with meaning ‘to go out’ or ‘to leave’ in Japanese.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
