Breakdown of gomibako ni hukuro wo irete okimasu.
にni
destination particle
をwo
direct object particle
〜て おく〜te oku
to do something in advance
ごみ箱gomihako
trash can
袋hukuro
bag
入れるirereru
to put in
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Questions & Answers about gomibako ni hukuro wo irete okimasu.
What is the function of the particle に in ごみ箱に?
Particle に marks the target location where something is placed when used with movement or placement verbs. Here, ごみ箱に means “into the trash can.”
Why is 袋 (bag) marked with を and not another particle?
を marks the direct object of the verb 入れる (“to put in”). It indicates what is being put into the trash can. Using が would instead mark a subject or emphasize existence, which isn’t the case here.
Can I swap the word order to 袋をごみ箱に入れておきます?
Yes. Japanese is relatively flexible in word order because particles define grammatical roles. 袋をごみ箱に入れておきます and ごみ箱に袋を入れておきます both mean “I’ll put a bag in the trash can (in advance).” Changing the order may slightly shift emphasis but not the core meaning.
What nuance does ておく (in 入れておきます) add compared to just 入れます?
ておく, here in its polite form ておきます, conveys doing something in advance or for future convenience.
- 袋を入れます simply states “I will put a bag in.”
- 袋を入れておきます means “I’ll go ahead and put a bag in now so it’s ready later.”
How is 袋を入れておきます different from 袋を入れてあります?
- 入れておきます (with を) focuses on the speaker’s action of preparing: “I will put it in (and leave it).”
- 入れてあります (with が) describes the resulting state: “A bag has already been put in (and remains there).” It’s a statement about how things currently are, rather than a future action.
Is there a more casual way to say 入れておきます?
Yes. In casual speech, ておく often contracts to とく. You can say 袋を入れとく (“I’ll put a bag in [for later]”) or, with a slightly polite tone, 袋を入れときます.