Asking for Basic Permission | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. これを使ってもいいですか。

   Can I use this?

   これ

   this

   使って

   use

   もいいですか

   is it okay?

   More detail

   これ means “this” and is a demonstrative pronoun. Here it refers to the thing the speaker wants to use, without identifying what that thing is. Japanese demonstratives include これ “this,” それ “that near you,” and あれ “that over there”; choose among them according to the relative location of the referent. 使って comes from the verb 使う, “to use.” Its form here is the て-form, 使って. This form connects the verb to a following expression, rather than expressing a separate past meaning. For example, これを使ってください。 means “Please use this.” The particle を marks これ as the object of 使う. もいいですか is a permission pattern. After a て-form, V-てもいいですか asks whether it is acceptable or permitted to do V: 使ってもいいですか。 means “Is it okay if I use it?” The も is part of this pattern; it does not mean “also” in this question. The polite ending ですか makes the question suitable for a respectful everyday request. The same pattern appears in ここに座ってもいいですか。, “Can I sit here?” Together, これを使ってもいいですか。 is built as “this + object marker + use-て-form + may I?” and means “Can I use this?”

2. ここに座ってもいいですか。

   Can I sit here?

   ここ

   here

   座って

   sit

   もいいですか

   is it okay?

   More detail

   ここ means “here” in this utterance. It is a demonstrative for a place; the exact place is supplied by the situation, not by the word itself. With に, ここに marks this place as the location of the action. 座って is the te-form of 座る (“to sit”). The te-form connects 座る to a following pattern; it is not the polite sentence ending by itself. For example, ここに座ってください。 means “Please sit here.” もいいですか is the permission pattern Vて + もいいですか, meaning “May I …?” or “Is it okay if I …?” Here, もいいですか follows 座って, so the action being checked is sitting. The polite question ending ですか makes the request suitable for a respectful interaction. The same pattern appears in これを使ってもいいですか。, “May I use this?” Together, ここに identifies the place, 座って supplies the action in te-form, and もいいですか asks whether that action is permitted. The whole utterance therefore means “Can I sit here?”

3. 入ってもいいですか。

   Can I come in?

   入って

   come in; enter

   てもいいですか

   may I …?

   More detail

   入って is the て-form of 入る (“to enter; to go in”). Here it means “come in” because the utterance asks permission for the speaker to enter. The て-form also connects this verb to the following permission pattern. Example: 入ってください。 — “Please come in.” てもいいですか is a polite way to ask whether an action is permitted: [て-form] + もいいですか means “May I …?” or “Is it okay if I …?” In this pattern, いい means that the action is acceptable, and ですか makes the expression a polite question. The same pattern appears with other verbs: 座ってもいいですか。 — “May I sit?”; 見てもいいですか。 — “May I look at it?” Together, 入って (“entering/come in” in the connecting て-form) and もいいですか (“is it okay?”) produce 入ってもいいですか。, meaning “May I come in?” The sentence asks for permission; it does not state that the speaker has already entered.

4. それを見てもいいですか。

   Can I see it?

   それ

   it; that

   見て

   see; look

   もいいですか

   is it okay?

   More detail

   それ means “it” or “that” here. It is a demonstrative pronoun: the form itself does not identify the exact referent, while the fixed translation establishes the intended meaning as “it.” A useful related contrast is これ, “this,” for something associated with the speaker; それ commonly points to something associated with the listener or already mentioned. 見て is the て-form of 見る, “to see” or “to look at.” In this sentence it refers to viewing the object indicated by それ. The て-form is also used before certain following patterns, including もいいですか here. For example, 見てください means “Please look,” where 見て connects to the request pattern ください. もいいですか follows the て-form in the permission pattern て-form + もいいですか, meaning “Is it okay if I …?” or “May I …?” The も belongs to this pattern; the construction asks for permission rather than merely asking whether something is good. The same reusable pattern appears in the supplied examples 入ってもいいですか, “May I come in?”, and 試してもいいですか, “May I try it?” Together, それを marks “it” as the object, 見て supplies “see/look at,” and 見てもいいですか asks permission to do that. The whole utterance therefore means “Can I see it?”

5. それを試してもいいですか。

   Can I try it?

   それ

   it; that

   試して

   try

   てもいいですか

   may I …?

   More detail

   それ is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “it” or “that” here. The fixed translation identifies it as the item the speaker wants to try, but does not specify exactly what that item is. Japanese demonstratives do not change for English-style gender or number. A useful contrast is これ (“this”), used for something presented as nearer to the speaker. 試して is the te-form of the verb 試す (“to try”): 試す → 試して. The te-form connects this verb to the permission pattern that follows. For example, これを試してみます。 means “I’ll try this.” てもいいですか is the permission pattern V-てもいいですか, asking whether it is acceptable for someone to do V. In this sentence, the て connects to 試す, so 試してもいいですか means “Is it okay to try?” The polite ending ですか makes the question polite. For example, ここに座ってもいいですか。 means “May I sit here?” Together, それを marks “it” as the object, and 試してもいいですか asks for permission to try it. The subject is not stated in Japanese; in the fixed translation, the person asking is understood as “I.” The whole utterance therefore means “Can I try it?”

6. これをもらってもいいですか。

   Can I have this?

   これ

   this

   もらってもいいですか

   May I have ...?

   More detail

   これ means “this” and refers to the item being indicated in the utterance. It is a demonstrative pronoun, so it can stand on its own as the object of a verb. Before a noun, the corresponding form is この + noun, as in この本 (“this book”). もらってもいいですか contains the polite question pattern ～てもいいですか, meaning “Is it okay if I …?” Here, もらって is the te-form of もらう, “to receive” or “to get”; the speaker presents the action as receiving the item. The te-form links the action to もいいですか (“is it okay?”). Example: これを使ってもいいですか。 — “May I use this?” The same ～てもいいですか pattern asks permission, while the verb before it supplies the permitted action. Together, これを (“this” as the object) and もらってもいいですか (“is it okay if I receive/get it?”) produce the natural meaning “Can I have this?” The polite question asks whether receiving the indicated item is allowed.