てください | Making Requests in Japanese

What is てください?

てください is the go-to way to make polite requests in Japanese. "Please wait," "please look at this," "please sit down." If you need to ask someone to do something in a polite, everyday way, this is the pattern you'll reach for.

It builds on the て form, so if you've got that down already, you're most of the way there. Our lesson on polite requests and permission covers てください alongside てもいい and other ways to ask, suggest, and permit.

Positive Requests: て form + ください

Take the て form of any verb and add ください:

This is polite but not overly formal. It's appropriate for most daily situations -- asking a shop clerk, talking to a coworker, speaking with someone you don't know well.

Negative Requests: ない form + でください

When you want to say "please don't do ~," use the ない form of the verb and add でください:

This is softer than the negative imperative (するな), which is a blunt command. ないでください is a polite request; するな is an order.

Leveling Up: More Polite Requests

てください is polite, but sometimes you need to be extra polite -- asking a favor of a stranger, a boss, or in formal situations. Here are some options, from polite to very polite:

てくれませんか literally asks "won't you do this for me?" which feels more like a request than an instruction. ていただけませんか uses humble language and is the most deferential -- save it for situations where you really want to be respectful.

Casual Requests

In casual speech with friends and family, you can drop ください entirely and just use the て form by itself:

• 見(み)て！ (Look!)
• 待(ま)って！ (Wait!)
• ちょっと手伝(てつだ)って。 (Help me out a bit.)

You can also use てくれない？ as a casual way to ask someone to do something for you:

• それ取(と)ってくれない？ (Can you grab that for me?)

How てください Differs from Other Commands

Japanese has several ways to tell someone to do something. Here's where てください fits in the spectrum:

• て form alone -- casual request (して / 見(み)て)
• てください -- polite request
• なさい -- authoritative instruction (parent to child, teacher to student)
• Imperative form -- strong command (しろ / 見(み)ろ)

Example Sentences

• ちょっと待(ま)ってください。 (chotto matte kudasai.)
  Please wait a moment.

• ここに名前(なまえ)を書(か)いてください。 (koko ni namae wo kaite kudasai.)
  Please write your name here.

• 写真(しゃしん)を撮(と)っていただけませんか？ (shashin wo totte itadakemasen ka?)
  Could you please take a photo? (very polite)

• ここでは走(はし)らないでください。 (koko de wa hashiranaide kudasai.)
  Please don't run here.

• もう一(いち)度(ど)言(い)ってくれませんか？ (mou ichido itte kuremasen ka?)
  Could you say that one more time?

• 心配(しんぱい)しないでください。 (shinpai shinaide kudasai.)
  Please don't worry.

• この書類(しょるい)を読(よ)んでください。 (kono shorui wo yonde kudasai.)
  Please read this document.

• 先生(せんせい)、もう少(すこ)しゆっくり話(はな)していただけませんか？ (sensei, mou sukoshi yukkuri hanashite itadakemasen ka?)
  Teacher, could you please speak a little more slowly?