貰(もら)うTo receive, To get, To obtain

Unlike あげる and くれる, に (or から) marks the giver, not the recipient

Structure

Giver^(*)に + Recipient^(*)は⁽¹⁾ + Object^(*)をもらう

Recipient^(*)は⁽¹⁾ + Giver^(*)に + Object^(*)をもらう

Giver^(*)に + Object^(*)を + Recipient^(*)は⁽¹⁾もらう

^(*) Giver, Recipent and Object are Nouns
⁽¹⁾ が

Details

Part of Speech
Verb
Word Type
Independent Word
Register
Standard

About もらう

もらう is the 3rd verb that is regularly taught together with くれる, and あげる. It is used to highlight that (A) is 'received' by someone. However, unlike くれる and あげる (which are used to highlight that something is 'given'), もらう requires the に particle (or から) to mark the giver, not the recipient. が or は may be used to mark the recipient, as they are the one performing the action of receiving. を will mark the object that is being given.

In the second sentence we can see that the recipient has been omitted, while in the third example, the giver was omitted. This is a regular occurrence when using もらう, as the receiver is usually obvious, or the 'giver' may not be important to the overall meaning of the sentence.

In this example, the thing that was given is the focus, while the speaker does not consider the 'giver' something that needs to be mentioned. Sometimes, for very simple sentences with clear context, neither the 'giver', nor the 'receiver' needs to be mentioned.

Examples

--:--

私(わたし)はお祖母(ばあ)さんからおはしとコップをもらった。

I received chopsticks and a glass from my grandmother.

彼女(かのじょ)に(私(わたし)は)青(あお)い花(はな)をもらいます。

(I) receive blue flowers from her (my girlfriend).

(私(わたし)は)友達(ともだち)に暖(あたた)かいセーターをもらった。

(I) received a warm sweater from (my) friend.

父(ちち)から(私(わたし)は)お金(かね)をもらった。

(I) received money from my father.

(私(わたし)は)明後日(あさって)給料(きゅうりょう)をもらいます。

(I) receive (my) salary the day after next.

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Online
- Inner/outer circles and which verb to use
  Kanji Link [video]
- When to use もらう
  Tae Kim
- あげる, くれる, and もらう as Verbs
  Wasabi

Offline
- Genki II 2nd Edition
  Page 57
- Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
  Page 174
- みんなの日本語 I
  Page 50 [CH 7]
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もらう – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (9 in total)

Pushindawood
to receive, to get, to obtain
Structure
- Giverに・から + Recipientは・が + Nounを もらう
- Recipientは・が + Giverに・から + Nounを もらう
View on Bunpro

Unlike あげる and くれる, に (or から) marks the giver, not the recipient

[もらう behaves similarly to くれる, but もらう is only used for receiving, while あげる and くれる are used for giving]

[If the context is clear, both the giver and the receiver can be omitted]

additional reading:
max99x
I got the sentence “彼女に(私は)青花を____” in a review. The hint said “get” which made me think あげる, i.e. “I get her blue flowers”. Should the hint be something less ambiguous like “receive” or “get from”?
mrnoone
Hey

I have changed “get” to “receive” in translations, so it will be a kind of clue.
Though the best way to distinguish is to check which particle marks the giver. In this case it is に so it implies もらう

Cheers!
fjdksleiwoqp
Pushindawood
@fjdksleiwoqp Hey! This particular hint was just meant to point out that when this grammar point is used, the giver is marked with に or から. Although there are no givers in this sentence (some circumstances could have prevented the sister from gifting the gift herself), we still believe that this clue helps you determine the answer without giving the answer away. Cheers!
fjdksleiwoqp
Gotcha, thanks for the clarification.
k-n
Hello —

the example in the article:
" これをもらった！
I got this!"

Does this mean “I received this” or does it mean “I believe I will succeed in doing this”?
IcyIceBear
Received. Something to be said while showing someone an item received. もらう is used when something is received as the grammar point says

Welcome to the community
casual
Well, we don’t have context for this sentence, but もらった！ can also mean “I believe I will succeed in doing this”. This is because of もらう additional definition of “to have in one’s pocket (a fight, match)”. You can hear anime characters use it from time to time.
for example
k-n
thank you both