Lesson 71
Te Form for Continuing Statements
Let's wrap up the Te Form with one of its basic and very convenient uses: talking about multiple or further actions. First, some simple ones. Let's combine three actions into one statement:
- Shizu ni denwa shite, heya o katazukete, kaimono ni ikanakereba naranai. (I've got to call Shizu, straighten up the room, and go shopping.)
- Kesa watashi wa shichiji ni okite, gohan o tabete, hachiji ni ie o demashita. (This morning I got up at seven o'clock, ate breakfast, and left home at eight.)
As you can see, when a certain conjugation applies to all verbs in a construction, only the final verb is conjugated to give the intended meaning; the ones preceding it in the Te Form will automatically assume the same conjugation. To end a particular conjugation (intended meaning) and continue with a different one, just put that conjugation in the Te Form and continue:
- Kinou watashi wa inu ni soto de asobasete, esa o ataete, jibun no yuushoku o tsukurimashita. (Yesterday I let the dog play outside, fed him, and then made my own dinner.)
Please keep in mind that not all conjugations have or use the Te Form. When you're not sure, just start a new sentence. You don't want to get into the habit of making run-on sentences, which can happen in Japanese as easily as it can in English.
Incidentally, Base 2 can also be used to end a phrase and continue, as outlined here.
Word Check
heya: a room
katazukeru: to clean up; to straighten up; to put in order
kaimono: shopping
kesa: this morning
okiru: to get up
gohan: a meal
ie: home; a house
deru: to leave; to go/come out
kinou: yesterday
inu: dog
soto: outside
esa: pet food; bait
ataeru: to give
jibun: self
yuushoku: dinner
tsukuru: to make
(Verbs are shown in their plain form.)
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