Grammar Info
N5 Lesson 4: 4/13

へ行(い)く
To go to, To head toward

Structure
Place + (1) + 行く

(1)
Details
Part of Speech Expression
Word Type Verb
Register Standard
品詞 表現
単語の種類 動詞
使用域 一般
Information
へ行(い)く is a common construction used when describing a place that someone/something is ‘heading’. The particles and are interchangeable, but there is a slight difference in meaning. has the nuance of ‘going to’, while has the nuance of ‘heading to’.
  • ジョン学校(がっこう)へ行(い)く
    John is heading to school.
  • エルサ病院(びょういん)に行(い)く
    Elsa is going to the hospital.
In these examples, while they may seem the same at first glance, focuses much more on the journey, while puts more emphasis on the destination. This is true for other uses of and as well. will always put more focus on the destination of an action, where will put more emphasis on the distance traveled/between the origin and destination.
  • 先生(せんせい)電話(でんわ)する
    To make a call to the teacher. (Focuses more on the distance between the caller and receiver)
  • 先生(せんせい)電話(でんわ)する
    To make a call to the teacher. (Focuses more on the destination of the call)
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学校(がっこう)へ行(い)く
To go to school.
Play  
駅(えき)へ行(い)く
To go to the station.
[to・toward]
Play  
東京(とうきょう)へ行(い)く
To go to Tokyo.
Play  
Online
Books
Genki I
Page 91
みんなの日本語 I
Page 38 [CH 5]
[DBJG] A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar
Page 149