What is てみる?
てみる means "try doing something to see what it's like." It's the Japanese way of saying "give it a shot," "try it out," or "see what happens if you do it." Want to try eating natto? Try speaking Japanese with a stranger? Try on that jacket? All てみる situations.
The pattern is simple: take the て form of a verb and add みる. The みる here is written in hiragana, not 見る (to see), because it's functioning as an auxiliary verb -- a helper that adds meaning to the main verb rather than standing on its own.
How to Form It
| Dictionary | てみる |
|---|---|
| 食べる | 食べてみる |
| 使う | 使ってみる |
| 着る | 着てみる |
| 聞く | 聞いてみる |
| する | してみる |
Conjugating てみる
Since みる here is a ru-verb, it conjugates like any other ru-verb. This is covered in our lesson on verb conjugation basics:
| Form | Example |
|---|---|
| Present (casual) | 食べてみる |
| Present (polite) | 食べてみます |
| Past (casual) | 食べてみた |
| Past (polite) | 食べてみました |
| Negative (casual) | 食べてみない |
| Negative (polite) | 食べてみません |
| Volitional | 食べてみよう |
| Request | 食べてみてください |
The past tense てみた is particularly useful: "I tried it (and here's what happened)."
てみる vs ようとする
Both can translate to "try" in English, but they mean very different things:
てみる -- try doing something to see the result. You're curious, you want to experience it. The attempt itself usually succeeds; you're interested in the outcome.
- 納豆を食べてみた。
I tried eating natto. (I ate it to see what it was like.)
ようとする -- try to do something, as in make an effort or attempt. The action may or may not succeed. The focus is on the struggle.
- 納豆を食べようとした。
I tried to eat natto. (I attempted it -- maybe I couldn't.)
When you tell someone てみて, you're saying "give it a shot!" not "struggle to do it."
Common Uses
てみる shows up a lot in suggestions and invitations:
- 一度やってみてください。
Please try doing it once. - これ、飲んでみて！
Try drinking this! - 日本語で話してみましょう。
Let's try speaking in Japanese.
It's also common when talking about your own experiences. てしまう expresses regret about completing something, but てみる is neutral or positive -- you tried something and you're reporting on the experience.
Example Sentences
新しいレストランに行ってみた。
I tried going to a new restaurant.
この靴、履いてみてもいいですか？
May I try these shoes on?
日本語で手紙を書いてみました。
I tried writing a letter in Japanese.
やってみないと分からない。
You won't know unless you try.
一口食べてみて！おいしいよ。
Try a bite! It's delicious.
自分で作ってみようと思う。
I think I'll try making it myself.
先生に聞いてみたら？
Why don't you try asking the teacher?
このアプリを使ってみてください。
Please try using this app.