Japanese reference
勤める
つとめる
to work for (a company)
Regular · 32 form tables
Rows describe verb forms and levels of politeness. Honorific and humble forms are labeled separately. Strong commands appear under additional forms.
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Basic
Non past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Dictionary form | つとめる (tsutomeru)work for (a company) |
| Polite, masu | つとめます (tsutomemasu)work for (a company) |
Negative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Negative, nai | つとめない (tsutomenai)do not work for (a company) |
| Polite negative | つとめません (tsutomemasen)do not work for (a company) |
Past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Past, ta | つとめた (tsutometa)worked for (a company) |
| Polite past | つとめました (tsutomemashita)worked for (a company) |
Past negative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Past negative | つとめなかった (tsutomenakatta)did not work for (a company) |
| Polite past negative | つとめませんでした (tsutomemasendeshita)did not work for (a company) |
Linking
Te form
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Te-form | つとめて (tsutomete)working for (a company) (and then) |
| Polite te-form | つとめまして (tsutomemashite)working for (a company) (and then) |
Te iru
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Te-iru: ongoing action / resulting state | つとめている (tsutometeiru)be working for (a company) |
| Polite te-iru | つとめています (tsutometeimasu)be working for (a company) |
Conditional, ba
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Conditional, ba | つとめれば (tsutomereba)if you work for (a company) |
| Rare literary polite conditional | つとめますれば (tsutomemasureba)if you work for (a company) (rare and literary). In ordinary polite conversation, use the plain conditional and make the main clause polite |
Conditional, tara
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Conditional, tara | つとめたら (tsutometara)if you work for (a company) |
| Polite conditional, tara | つとめましたら (tsutomemashitara)if you work for (a company) |
Mood
Potential
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Potential | つとめられる (tsutomerareru)can work for (a company) |
| Polite potential | つとめられます (tsutomeraremasu)can work for (a company) |
Volitional
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Volitional | つとめよう (tsutomeyou)let's work for (a company)! |
| Polite volitional | つとめましょう (tsutomemashou)let's work for (a company)! |
Desire, tai
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Desire, tai | つとめたい (tsutometai)want to work for (a company) |
| Polite desire, tai | つとめたいです (tsutometaidesu)want to work for (a company) |
Voice
Passive
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Passive | つとめられる (tsutomerareru)be affected when someone works for (a company) |
| Polite passive | つとめられます (tsutomeraremasu)be affected when someone works for (a company) |
Causative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Causative | つとめさせる (tsutomesaseru)make or let someone work for (a company) |
| Polite causative | つとめさせます (tsutomesasemasu)make or let someone work for (a company) |
Causative passive
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Causative-passive | つとめさせられる (tsutomesaserareru)be made to work for (a company) |
| Polite causative-passive | つとめさせられます (tsutomesaseraremasu)be made to work for (a company) |
Commands
Negative imperative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Negative imperative | つとめるな (tsutomeruna)do not work for (a company)! |
| Polite negative request | つとめないでください (tsutomenaidekudasai)please do not work for (a company) |
Polite
Polite non past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Polite non-past form | つとめます (tsutomemasu)work for (a company) |
Polite negative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Polite negative form | つとめません (tsutomemasen)do not work for (a company) |
Polite past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Polite past form | つとめました (tsutomemashita)worked for (a company) |
Polite past negative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Polite past negative form | つとめませんでした (tsutomemasendeshita)did not work for (a company) |
Requests
Request with kudasai
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Request with kudasai | つとめてください (tsutometekudasai)please work for (a company) |
Negative request
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Request not to act | つとめないでください (tsutomenaidekudasai)please do not work for (a company) |
Invitation with mashou
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Invitation with mashou | つとめましょう (tsutomemashou)let's work for (a company)! |
Permission
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Permission | つとめてもいい (tsutometemoii)may work for (a company) |
| Polite permission | つとめてもいいです (tsutometemoiidesu)may work for (a company) |
Not allowed
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Not allowed | つとめてはいけない (tsutometehaikenai)must not work for (a company) |
| Polite prohibition | つとめてはいけません (tsutometehaikemasen)must not work for (a company) |
Instruction with nasai
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Instruction with nasai | つとめなさい (tsutomenasai)work for (a company) (instruction) |
Aspect
Try doing
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Try doing | つとめてみる (tsutometemiru)try to work for (a company) |
| Polite try doing | つとめてみます (tsutometemimasu)try to work for (a company) |
Completion or regret
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Completion or regret | つとめてしまう (tsutometeshimau)work for (a company) completely or regrettably |
| Polite completion or regret | つとめてしまいます (tsutometeshimaimasu)work for (a company) completely or regrettably |
Preparation
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Preparation | つとめておく (tsutometeoku)work for (a company) in advance |
| Polite preparation | つとめておきます (tsutometeokimasu)work for (a company) in advance |
Past experience
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Past experience | つとめたことがある (tsutometakotogaaru)have the experience of: worked for (a company) |
| Polite past experience | つとめたことがあります (tsutometakotogaarimasu)have the experience of: worked for (a company) |
Conditions
Automatic result, to
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Automatic result, to | つとめると (tsutomeruto)whenever you work for (a company) |
| Polite automatic result | つとめますと (tsutomemasuto)whenever you work for (a company) |
Given that, nara
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Given that, nara | つとめるなら (tsutomerunara)if you mean to work for (a company) |
Probability
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Probability | つとめるだろう (tsutomerudarou)probably work for (a company) |
| Polite probability | つとめるでしょう (tsutomerudeshou)probably work for (a company) |
Additional forms
Strong command
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| Imperative | つとめろ (tsutomero)work for (a company)! |
| Polite request | つとめてください (tsutometekudasai)please work for (a company) |
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all Japanese entries.