Japanese

てつだう
Meaning: to help; to assist; to lend a hand
Part of Speech: Verb

Listen to pronunciation

Show inflections Hide inflections

Verb inflections

Form Affirmative Negative
Present 手伝う 手伝わない
Polite 手伝います 手伝いません
Past 手伝った 手伝わなかった
Polite + Past 手伝いました 手伝いませんでした
Te-form 手伝って 手伝わなくて
Potential 手伝える 手伝えない
Passive 手伝われる 手伝われない
Causative 手伝わせる 手伝わせない
Causative + Passive 手伝わされる 手伝わされない
Imperative 手伝え 手伝うな

Handwriting

手
伝
う

Example sentences

I help my mother with her work on weekends.
必要ならば、私が手伝います。
If necessary, I will help.
手伝ってくれると本当に助かります。
It would really help me if you could lend a hand.
彼女の重い荷物を駅まで運ぶのを手伝った
I helped her carry her heavy luggage to the station.
今日は手伝ってくれてありがとね。
Thanks for helping me today.
ぼんやり突っ立っていないで、手伝ってください。
Don't just stand there idly; please help me.
最新のロボットが家事を手伝ってくれる。
The latest robots help with housework.
幼い子供が一人で家事を手伝う健気な姿に心を打たれた。
I was touched by the admirable sight of a young child helping with housework alone.
事故現場に居合わせた人々が、けが人の救助を手伝った。
The people who happened to be at the scene of the accident helped rescue the injured.
言っとくけど、僕はもう手伝わないよ。
Just so you know, I'm not helping anymore.

Usage Notes

To help someone with their work or tasks. Can also mean several factors combining to cause a result.

Sottaku

About Sottaku

Sottaku is an app for learning Chinese, Japanese, Korean, English, Spanish, French, German, and Italian with a strong focus on SRS. It includes automatic flashcard creation for hundreds of thousands of words, grammar breakdowns in example sentences, language-specific study packs where available, adaptive quizzes, mobile apps, a browser extension, and community features. Give it a try now! All learning content is free with no limits on flashcards or study time.

Sottaku is built to match the habits of successful learners. By using Sottaku, you will naturally learn in the most efficient way possible, as proven by countless success stories in the language learning community.

Free Forever

Access all grammar guides, quizzes, and flashcards without paying a cent. Quality education should be accessible to everyone.

Smart SRS System

Our flashcard system uses the FSRS algorithm (also used in Anki) to optimize your review schedule and maximize retention.

Comprehensive Content

From hanzi, kana, hangul, and European vocabulary basics to grammar and reading practice where available, we have lessons for every level. Practice with quizzes tailored to your skill.

Community Chat

Ask level-appropriate questions and get help from the community. Learn together with fellow learners across all 8 supported languages.