What does “kudasai” mean in Japanese?
Japanese native speakers use “kudasai” mainly in two different ways: as a verb to mean ‘please give [someone] [something]’; as an auxiliary verb to add the meaning of ‘please’ to its preceding verb. Perhaps, many Japanese learners know this word as it is often used in Japanese textbooks. In this blog post, however, I will explain what “kudasai” means and how it works in detail. My explanations would help Japanese learners understand “kudasai” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
What does “kudasai” mean as a verb?
Let me start with the meaning of “kudasai” as a verb.
- kudasai – 下さい (ください) : the command form of the verb, “kudasaru”, which politely means ‘to give’ in Japanese.
Japanese native speakers use this command form to ask someone to give something to them. In this regard, its usage is very similar to that of the English phrase, “please give [someone] [something]”, I think. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.
Example #1: how to say “please give” in Japanese
watashi ni tabemono wo kudasai – 私に食べ物を下さい (わたしにたべものをください)
Please give me food.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
- ni – に : a case particle used to say in which direction an action goes. This is often translated into English as “to”. In the example, this is used after “watashi” to say to whom the action described by “kudasai” is directed.
- tabemono – 食べ物 (たべもの) : a noun meaning ‘food’ in Japanese.
- wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after “tabemono” to make the object in the sentence.
This is a typical usage of this type of “kudasai”. In this example, it works together with “wo” to have the object. Like in this example, it often follows the case particle, “wo”, when it works as a verb.
What does “kudasai” mean as an auxiliary verb?
Next, let me explain the meaning of “kudasai” as an auxiliary verb.
- kudasai – ください : an auxiliary verb used after a te-formed verb to add the meaning of ‘please’.
This type is often written in hiragana, so we need to be careful with the writing system.
This type quite often follows a te-formed verb to add the meaning of ‘please’. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #2: how to add the meaning of “please” to a verb
motto nihongo wo benkyou shi te kudasai – もっと日本語を勉強して下さい (もっとにほんごをべんきょうしてください)
Please study Japanese more.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- motto – もっと : an adverb meaning ‘more’ or ‘further’ in Japanese.
- nihongo – 日本語 (にほんご) : a noun meaning ‘Japanese’ or ‘the Japanese language’ in Japanese.
- benkyou shi – 勉強し (べんきょうし) : one conjugation of the verb, “benkyou suru”, which means ‘to study’ or ‘to learn’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form. In the example, this is used after “benkyou shi” to make its te form, “benkyou shi te”. Verbs need to be conjugated to be connected with “kudasai”.
This is a typical usage of this type of “kudasai”. In this example, it works after the te-formed verb, “benkyou shi te”, to add the meaning of ‘please’. When we want to add the meaning of ‘please’ to a verb, this auxiliary verb is a very good option.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definitions and meanings of “kudasai” in detail together with the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- kudasai – 下さい (ください) : the command form of the verb, “kudasaru”, which politely means ‘to give’ in Japanese. Japanese native speakers use this command form to ask someone to give something to them. In this regard, its usage is very similar to that of the English phrase, “please give [someone] [something]”.
- kudasai – ください : an auxiliary verb used after a te-formed verb to add the meaning of ‘please’. When “kudasai” follows a te-formed verb, most probably it works as an auxiliary verb to add the meaning of ‘please’ to its preceding verb. This type is often written in hiragana, so we need to be careful with the writing system.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
