LEARN + JAPANESE / 82 of 186 JLPT N4
Done, For Better or Worse 〜てしまう
てしまう attaches to a verb’s て-form and adds a sense of completion, “go ahead and finish it,” “end up doing it.” Depending on context, it can sound like determination to wrap something up, or regret over something that already happened and can’t be undone.
Let's go ahead and get all the materials gathered.
Let's go ahead and finish the report completely.
Hint · 힌트
Paired with ましょう, てしまう pushes toward getting something fully done, not halfway, closer to “let’s just get this over with” than a plain ましょう alone would sound. The nuance is finality, no loose ends left.
I ended up losing a book I borrowed from a friend.
I accidentally ended up deleting an important photo.
In Real Life
Used with a past-tense mishap, てしまいました almost always carries regret, “I went and did it,” “it happened and now it’s done.” Casual speech often contracts てしまう down to ちゃう, なくしちゃった, a form you’ll hear constantly in spoken Japanese.
Vocabulary
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| materials, documents | |
| to gather, collect | |
| draft | |
| to finish, complete | |
| to submit | |
| to lose (an item) | |
| to erase, delete | |
| to break | |
| to forget | |
| to finish eating | |
| to regret | |
| irreversible | |
| carelessly, accidentally | |
| unintentionally, before you know it | |
| completely | |
| to tidy up, finish off | |
| to get done, finish | |
| to be late | |
| to drop | |
| regrettable |
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