Grammar Info

N4 Lesson 4: 12/18

～ておく

To do something in advance

Structure

Verb［て］+ おく
Verb［て］ +とく

Details

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Rare Kanji

置く

About ておく

When the conjunction particle て is followed by the う-Verb 置(お)く in Japanese, it regularly has the meaning of 'to do (A) in advance'. 置(お)く as a verb itself means 'to place something' (down), but also has the nuance 'to leave something alone', or to 'drop something' (like a topic). In this way, ておく can be thought of as meaning 'to do (A) and leave it (until later)'.
  • 寝(ね)る前(まえ)に食器(しょっき)を洗(あら)っておく。
    Before sleeping, I will wash the dishes in advance. (So that it does not need to be done later)
  • あなたの財布(さいふ)を鞄(かばん)に入れておきます。
    I am going to put your wallet in your bag. (So that you won't forget it later)
  • 予約(よやく)しておくね。
    I am going to make a reservation in advance. (So that the bookings don't fill up while we wait)
When using ておく, the 'future event' that the (A) action is being done for may be something that is coming soon, or may be something that the speaker doesn't want to ever come. Due to this, ておく is also regularly used when the speaker is doing something specifically to prevent another thing from happening.
  • 毎日(まいにち)歯(は)を磨(みが)いておくと、虫歯(むしば)が防(ふせ)ぎます。
    If you brush your teeth everyday, you will be able to prevent cavities. (That may or may not come in the future)
Caution
ておく is sometimes contracted to とく (or どく in verbs where て would usually be said as で). Although this is not excessively common in conversation, it is very common in drama, manga, and similar media.
  • 机(つくえ)の上(うえ)に明日(あした)の旅行(りょこう)に必要(ひつよう)なパスポートを置(お)い とくね。
    I am going to leave the passport we need for the trip tomorrow on top of the table in advance. (So that I won't forget it later)
  • 水筒(すいとう)に水(みず)を汲(く)んどくね。
    I am going to fill this thermos up with water in advance. (So that it is available when I am thirsty)

Examples

  • 明日(あした)のパーティーのためにジュースを買(か)っておきました。

    I bought juice (in advance) for the party tomorrow.

    ために

  • 今夜(こんや)明日(あした)のお弁当(べんとう)を作(つく)っておいてくれますか。

    Will you make tomorrow's bento (in advance) for me tonight?

  • ちょっと調(しら)べておきます。

    I will do a little research in advance.

  • 旅行(りょこう)に行(い)く前(まえ)にトイレに行(い)っておく。

    Before going on a trip I will go to the bathroom in advance.

  • アメリカに帰(かえ)る前(まえ)に円(えん)をドルに変(か)えておく。

    Before returning to America, I will change my yen into dollars in advance.

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ておく – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (37 in total)

  • Superpnut

    Superpnut

    @nekoyama @EbonyMidget
    You both have very cool names, almost as cool as my username.
    Thank you for explaining that to me I wasn’t sure. I did think it’d just make the sentence directly incorrect but I wanted to check with people
    ありがと～～～

  • HaroldoNVU

    HaroldoNVU

  • ixxie

    ixxie

    Hello, I’m really struggling to get this grammar nailed down.
    This is the example sentence:

    冷蔵庫()で__________コーラを二()つください。（冷()やす)
    Could I have two of the colas that were being chilled (in advance) in the refrigerator?

    How do I know which form to conjugate first for the answer? Does ている or ておく get added to 冷やす first?

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