Practising Talking about Favours

1. Vocabulary List

Form	Match	Meaning
てあげる	giving a favour (speaker is the giver)	I do something for others
てくれる	giving a favour (speaker is the receiver)	someone does something for me
てもらう	receiving a favour	I get someone to do something for me

Same event, three perspectives — 見せる (to show) as a model:

Japanese	English	Form
私は友だちに写真を見せてあげます。	I show a photo to my friend.	あげる — I give the favour
友だちは私に写真を見せてくれます。	My friend shows me a photo.	くれる — friend gives to me
私は友だちに写真を見せてもらいます。	I get my friend to show me a photo.	もらう — I receive the favour

Structure	Who does the action	Particle for person	Example
(speaker)は + (person)に + てあげる	speaker	に	私は妹に教えてあげる
(person)は + (私)に + てくれる	someone else	に	むすこは私にかいてくれる
(speaker)は + (person)に + てもらう	someone else (for speaker)	に	私はむすめに手伝ってもらう

Japanese	Romaji	English	Form
私は妹におもしろいゲームアプリを教えてあげました。	Watashi wa imouto ni omoshiroi geemu apuri wo oshiete agemashita.	I told my younger sister an interesting game app.	あげる
むすこは私のえをかいてくれました。	Musuko wa watashi no e wo kaite kuremashita.	My son drew a picture of me.	くれる
私はむすめに料理を手伝ってもらいました。	Watashi wa musume ni ryouri wo tetsudatte moraimashita.	I got my daughter to help me with the cooking.	もらう
私は店の人にほかの大きさのくつを持ってきてもらいました。	Watashi wa mise no hito ni hoka no ookisa no kutsu wo motte kite moraimashita.	I got a shop assistant to bring me some other sizes of shoes.	もらう

Two giving/receiving verbs can appear in the same sentence, connected by から (because):

Example 1 — Grandpa → me → family:

そ父は私にたくさんくだ物を買ってくれましたから、私は家族にケーキを作ってあげました。
(Sofu wa watashi ni takusan kudamono wo katte kuremashita kara, watashi wa kazoku ni keeki wo tsukutte agemashita.)
"Because my grandpa bought me a lot of fruit, I made a cake for my family."

"Grandpa" did "me" a favour (くれる), and "I" did a favour for "my family" (あげる).

Example 2 — me → friend → me:

私は友だちの動画にコメントを書いてあげました。友だちは私のコメントに「いいね！」ボタンを押してくれました。
(Watashi wa tomodachi no douga ni komento wo kaite agemashita. Tomodachi wa watashi no komento ni "ii ne!" botan wo oshite kuremashita.)
"I wrote a comment on my friend's video. My friend 'liked' my comment."

"I" did a favour (あげる) for "my friend", and "my friend" did "me" a favour (くれる).

Example 3 — brother → me → (my action back):

兄は私に料理してくれましたから、私はさらを洗ってあげました。
(Ani wa watashi ni ryouri shite kuremashita kara, watashi wa sara wo aratte agemashita.)
"Because my older brother cooked for me, I washed the dishes."

料理（りょうり）= cooking; 洗う（あらう）= to wash

When choosing あげる / くれる / もらう, ask: "Who is the speaker in relation to the favour?"

Am I doing the favour for someone else? → てあげる
→ 私は友だちに写真を見せてあげます。
Is someone doing the favour for me? → てくれる
→ 友だちは私に写真を見せてくれます。
Am I asking/getting someone to do a favour for me? → てもらう
→ 私は店の人にくつを持ってきてもらいました。

Grammar Focus: Fluency practice combining all three favour forms — てあげる, てくれる, てもらう — in context-rich real-life situations.
Key Exercise: Identifying which form fits from the perspective stated (who gives, who receives, who is the speaker).
Combined sentences: から (because) links two favour verbs together naturally — common in daily Japanese storytelling.
Vocabulary Note: 料理（りょうり）= cooking/food; 皿（さら）= dish/plate; 洗う（あらう）= to wash — common household vocabulary.
Social Media Context: Social media actions use てあげる (I comment on their video) and てくれる (they like my comment) naturally.