何をしていますか？ Nani o shite imasu ka? What are you doing? The Japanese Te Iru Form
In this post we’ll learn how to form and use the Japanese Te Iru Form. If you’re learning Japanese, one of the first verb patterns you’ll meet after mastering the basic present tense (or Non-Past Tense) is the 〜ている -te iru Form. It’s an essential structure for describing what you’re doing right now — and much more. First, we’ll see the range of meanings that the Japanese Te Iru Form has. Next, we’ll learn how to form it, focusing on the 〜て -te form of the verb. After that we’ll take a closer look at いる iru. Finally, we’ll wrap up with several examples to bring it all together.
〜ている -te iru: What is the Japanese Te Iru Form
Before we look at how to form this important Japanese construction, let’s take a look at its most common meanings.
Ongoing Actions
In English, we use the present continuous for ongoing actions, with be and the –ing form of the verb. I am studying. She is eating. You are reading a blog post about Japanese grammar. Japanese does this with a verb’s 〜て –te form followed by a form of the verb いる iru. When combined, they create a compound verb that means “to be doing” something.
- 勉強しています。
Benkyō shite imasu.
I am studying. - 田中さんは食べています。
Tanaka-san wa tabete imasu.
Tanaka is eating. - 今、テレビを見ています。
Ima, terebi o mite imasu.
I’m watching TV now. - 父はたばこを吸っています。
Chichi wa tabako o sutte imasu.
My father is smoking.
Habitual Actions
In English, the present progressive tense is often used to describe a habitual action. He’s always complaining. I’m constantly doing laundry. There is a similar interpretation of the Japanese -te iru form. You’ll often see time adverbs like 毎日 mainichi (every day) or よく yoku (often) in these cases, but not always.
- 毎日ジョギングをしています。
Mainichi jogingu o shite imasu.
I jog every day. - 毎日日本語を勉強しています。
Mainichi nihongo o benkyō shite imasu.
I study Japanese every day. - 子どもたちはよく遊んでいます。
Kodomo-tachi wa yoku asonde imasu.
The children often play. - 兄は会社で働いています。
Ani wa kaisha de hataraite imasu.
My older brother works at a company. - 東京に住んでいます。
Tōkyō ni sunde imasu.
I live/am living in Tokyo.
Resulting States
The 〜ている -te iru form can also be used to express a resulting state. This is often the case with intransitive verbs like 開く aku (to open [by itself]) or 消える kieru (to go off, to disappear). This construction suggests that something happened in the past, and the resulting condition (being open, being off) continues to the present time.
- ドアが開いています。
Doa ga aite imasu.
The door is open. - 電気が消えています。
Denki ga kiete imasu.
The light is off. - 窓が閉まっています。
Mado ga shimatte imasu.
The window is closed. - 結婚しています。
Kekkon shite imasu.
I am married. - 道が混んでいます。
Michi ga konde imasu.
The road is crowded. - 壊れています。
Kowarete imasu.
It’s broken.
How to Form the Japanese Te Iru Form
To form the 〜ている -te iru construction, you need two elements:
- the verb’s〜てte-form
- a form of the verbいる iru, for example the plain form いる iru or the polite formいます imasu
The 〜てte-form of a Japanese Verb
There are three types of Japanese verbs: う -u Verbs(Godan Verbs), る -ru Verbs(Ichidan Verbs), and irregular verbs, of which there are only two. If you’re interested in reading more on these types of verbs, check out this post. https://thelanguagegarage.com/japanese-non-past-tense/
Group 1: う -u Verbs (Godan Verbs)
For う -u Verbs, change the final う -u syllable to the corresponding 〜てte or 〜で de ending.
| Ending | Change | Plain Example | Te Form | |
| う, つ, る -u, -tsu, -ru | → って -te | 会う au | 会ってatte | meet(ing) |
| む, ぶ, ぬ -mu, -bu, -nu | → んで -nde | 飲む nomu | 飲んでnonde | drink(ing) |
| く -ku | → いて -ite | 書く kaku | 書いてkaite | write/writing |
| ぐ -gu | → いで -ide | 泳ぐ oyogu | 泳いでoyoide | swim(ming) |
| す -su | → して -shite | 話す hanasu | 話してhanashite | speak(ing) |
- 子どもたちは泳いでいます。
Kodomo-tachi wa oyoide imasu.
The kids are swimming. - メールを書いています。
Mēru o kaite imasu.
I am writing an email.
Group 2: る -ru Verbs (Ichidan Verbs)
For る -ru verbs, simply drop the final –る -ru and replace it with 〜て -te.
| Ending | Change | Plain Example | Te Form | |
| –る -ru | à て -te | 食べるtaberu | 食べてtabete | eat(ing) |
| –る -ru | à て -te | 見る miru | 見て mite | look(ing) |
- 寿司を食べています。
Sushi o tabete imasu.
She is eating sushi. - 映画を見ています。
Eiga o mite imasu.
We are watching a movie.
Irregular Verbs
There are only two irregular verbs in Japanese: するsuru (to do) and 来る kuru (to come). Both have irregular 〜て–te forms.
- する suru → して shite
- 来る kuru → 来て kite
- 何をしていますか。
Nani o shite imasu ka.
What are you doing? - 電車が来ています。
Densha ga kite imasu.
The train has come (and is here now).
**来るkuru is a change of state verb, so it doesn’t refer to an ongoing activity, but rather a changed state.
About いる (iru)
Let’s review the forms of the verb いる iru, which when combined with a 〜て -te verb forms creates this construction.
| Plain Non-Past | 〜ている -te iru | 話している hanashite iru am/is/are speaking |
| Polite Non-Past | 〜ています -te imasu | 話しています hanashite imasu am/is/are speaking (polite) |
| Plain Past | 〜ていた -te ita | 話していた hanashite ita was/were speaking |
| Polite Past | 〜ていました -te imashita | 話していました。 hanashite imashita was/were speaking (polite) |
| Negative Plain Non-Past | 〜ていない -te inai | 話していない hanashite inai am/is/are not speaking |
| Negative Polite Non-Past | 〜ていません -te imasen | 話していません hanashite imasen am/is/are not speaking (polite) |
| Negative Plain Past | 〜ていなかった -te inakatta | 話していなかった hanashite inakatta was/were not speaking |
| Negative Polite Past | 〜ていませんでした -te imasen deshita | 話していませんでした hanashite imasen deshita was/were not speaking (polite) |
Notice that the past forms of いる iru are used to mean was/were doing, or they refer to habitual or resulting conditions in the past. Let’s see a few examples in both the past and non-past.
- 私は日本語を勉強しています。
Watashi wa Nihongo o benkyō shite imasu.
I am studying Japanese. - 今、コーヒーを飲んでいません。
Ima, kōhī o nonde imasen.
I’m not drinking coffee right now. - 何をしていますか。
Nani o shite imasu ka?
What are you doing? - 私はテレビを見ていた。
Watashi wa terebi o mite ita.
I was watching TV. - 子どもたちは外で遊んでいました。
Kodomo-tachi wa soto de asonde imashita.
The kids were playing outside. - 子どもたちは遊んでいなかった。
Kodomo-tachi wa asonde inakatta.
The kids weren’t playing. - 話していませんでした。
Hanashite imasen deshita.
She wasn’t/He wasn’t speaking.
Casual Speech
Let’s close with a note on how this form is often pronounced in casual speech. In casual speech, the い (i) in いる is very often dropped, especially after te-forms that end in a vowel sound.
- 今、何してる？
Ima, nani shiteru?
What are you doing? - テレビ見てる。
Terebi miteru.
I’m watching TV. - 行ってる？
Itteru?
Have you gone?
**行くiku is a change of state verb, so it doesn’t refer to an ongoing activity, but rather a changed state.
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