くれる: The Irregular Imperative くれ | Japanese Grammar

くれる ("to give to me / my side") is one of the best-behaved verbs in Japanese — a textbook 一段 (ichidan) verb whose forms you can generate on autopilot: くれます, くれない, くれた, くれて, くれれば. It has exactly one irregularity, and this page is about that single slot: its imperative is くれ, the bare stem, not the ×くれろ that the regular 一段 rule (食べる → 食べろ) would predict. くれる is the lone 一段 verb whose command form breaks the pattern — a tiny exception, but a high-frequency one, because 〜てくれ is the everyday (blunt, masculine) way to ask a favor.

Regular 一段 everywhere — except the imperative

Set くれる beside the model 一段 verb 食べる and they march in lockstep through the entire paradigm. Then, at the very last row, they part ways: 食べる takes the regular 一段 imperative 食べろ, but くれる takes the bare stem くれ.

Form	食べる (regular 一段)	くれる	Match?
Dictionary	食べる	くれる	same pattern
Polite (ます)	食べます	くれます	same pattern
Negative (ない)	食べない	くれない	same pattern
Past (た)	食べた	くれた	same pattern
te-form (て)	食べて	くれて	same pattern
Conditional (ば)	食べれば	くれれば	same pattern
Imperative (命令)	食べろ	くれ	DIFFERENT

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The rule for a 一段 imperative is "drop る, add ろ" — 見る→見ろ, 起きる→起きろ, 食べる→食べろ. くれる is the one verb that ignores it: you just drop the る and stop. くれる → くれ. Memorize it as a one-off; there is no deeper 一段 rule that produces くれ, so don't look for one.

くれ in real use — the blunt request 〜てくれ

The imperative くれ attaches to a te-form to make 〜てくれ, a direct, casual, and distinctly (masculine / rough) way to ask someone to do something for you. It is the register of close friends, family, and men speaking bluntly — warm among intimates, but far too blunt for anyone you'd address politely. The anchor to burn in is 貸してくれ, "lend it to me."

ちょっとペン貸してくれ。

chotto pen kashite kure

Lend me a pen for a sec. (blunt / casual — the anchor 貸してくれ)

悪いけど、そこの醤油を取ってくれ。

warui kedo, soko no shōyu o totte kure

Sorry, but pass me the soy sauce there. (casual 〜てくれ)

頼むから、少し静かにしてくれ。

tanomu kara, sukoshi shizuka ni shite kure

Come on, please, keep it down a bit. (pleading 〜てくれ)

A softer, more gender-neutral relative uses the negative-question form 〜てくれない? (rising intonation) instead of the bare imperative — the same "retreat from the command makes it politer" logic seen across the request ladder.

ちょっと手伝ってくれない？

chotto tetsudatte kurenai

Could you give me a hand? (softer, gender-neutral request)

The other forms — plain, regular, everyday

Outside the imperative, くれる is just a normal 一段 verb, and its non-imperative forms are the bread and butter of talking about gifts and favors received.

誕生日に妹が手袋をくれた。

tanjōbi ni imōto ga tebukuro o kureta

My little sister gave me gloves for my birthday. (past くれた — regular)

手伝ってくれてありがとう。

tetsudatte kurete arigatō

Thanks for helping me out. (te-form くれて)

頼んだのに、誰も教えてくれなかった。

tanonda noni, daremo oshiete kurenakatta

I asked, but nobody would tell me. (past negative くれなかった)

早めに返事をくれれば、こっちも助かる。

hayame ni henji o kurereba, kocchi mo tasukaru

If you reply sooner, it helps me out too. (conditional くれれば — regular)

くれ takes an object too, not just a te-form

くれ is a full imperative, so it also commands the plain "give me X" — a bare noun marked with を, no te-form in sight. This is the rough, intimate version of 〜をください.

のどが渇いた。水をくれ。

nodo ga kawaita. mizu o kure

I'm thirsty. Give me some water. (くれ commanding a direct object)

その塩、こっちにくれ。

sono shio, kocchi ni kure

Pass me that salt. (bare くれ with an object)

Everything about the register carries over: warm among intimates, rude to anyone you'd address politely, where you'd say 〜をください instead.

Why くれ, and the くれ / ください pair

The short answer for why it's くれ and not くれろ: history. くれる descends from a classical verb whose imperative was already the short form, and it simply never regularized to くれろ the way other verbs did. You don't need the philology to use it — but there is a pattern worth seeing. Its own honorific, くださる, also drops to a short imperative: ください, not ×くだされ. So the whole "give to me" family shortens its command:

Verb	Register	Imperative	NOT
くれる	blunt / casual	くれ	×くれろ
くださる	polite / honorific	ください	×くだされ

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Think of くれ and ください as the two ends of one request. 貸してくれ is what you say to a buddy; 貸してください is what you say to a superior or stranger. Same "give me the favor of…," two altitudes — and both use a shortened imperative rather than the regular -ろ / -れ. Choosing between them is the whole giving-and-receiving keigo decision in miniature.

Register warning: くれ is intimate, not neutral

Because くれ is blunt and masculine, it is not a default — it is a register choice. Aim it at friends and family; never at a teacher, a client, or a stranger, where it sounds rude. For everyone you'd address with です／ます, climb to ください. Women and men both use the softer 〜てくれない?／〜てくれる?; the bare 〜てくれ skews strongly masculine.

Common mistakes

Mistake 1 — applying the 食べろ rule to get ×くれろ. The one thing this page exists to prevent.

❌ ちょっとこれ持ってくれろ。

Wrong — the 一段 -ろ rule doesn't apply to くれる. Its imperative is the bare くれ: 持ってくれ.

✅ ちょっとこれ持ってくれ。

chotto kore motte kure

Hold this for a sec.

Mistake 2 — using くれ to a superior. Far too blunt; climb to ください.

❌ 先生、この問題の解き方を教えてくれ。

Rude — 〜てくれ is blunt and casual. To a teacher, use the honorific くださる's imperative: 教えてください.

✅ 先生、この問題の解き方を教えてください。

sensei, kono mondai no tokikata o oshiete kudasai

Teacher, please show me how to solve this problem.

Mistake 3 — using くれる for a gift that flows away from you. くれる is toward-me only; giving to someone else is あげる.

❌ 私は友達に誕生日プレゼントをくれた。

Wrong direction — くれる means someone gives to me/my side. For me giving to a friend, use あげた.

✅ 私は友達に誕生日プレゼントをあげた。

watashi wa tomodachi ni tanjōbi purezento o ageta

I gave my friend a birthday present.

Mistake 4 — wrong polarity: a positive request when you mean "stop." English "do X for me" tempts learners into 〜てくれ even when they want the person to quit.

❌ そんなに心配してくれ。

Backwards — 〜てくれ asks them TO do it, so this says 'please worry that much.' To ask someone to stop, use the negative 〜ないでくれ.

✅ そんなに心配しないでくれ。

sonna ni shinpai shinai de kure

Don't worry so much about me. (negative request)

Key takeaways

くれる is a regular 一段 verb in every form — くれます, くれない, くれた, くれて, くれれば — with one exception.
The exception is the imperative くれ (bare stem), not the 一段-regular ×くれろ; くれる is the lone 一段 verb with an irregular command.
〜てくれ is a blunt, casual, masculine favor request; the anchor is 貸してくれ. Soften it with 〜てくれない?.
Its honorific くださる shortens the same way: ください, not ×くだされ — the whole "give to me" family truncates its imperative.
Direction is fixed: くれる points toward you; giving away from you is あげる. Never aim くれ at a superior — use ください.

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