English has one verb for giving. Japanese has three, and which one you use depends on who is giving to whom relative to you. This is one of the genuinely unfamiliar pieces of A2 Japanese, and the exam likes it.
Here is the shortest version that still works.
The three verbs
| Verb | Direction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| あげます | I give to someone else, or A gives to B | 友だちに 本を あげました |
| くれます | Someone gives to me (or my side) | 友だちが 本を くれました |
| もらいます | I receive from someone | 友だちに 本を もらいました |
The difficulty is that くれます and もらいます describe the same event. The difference is the point of view: くれます makes the giver the subject, もらいます makes the receiver the subject.
The rule that resolves most questions
くれます always points at me. If the thing is arriving at you or your side, it cannot be あげます.
“My side” includes your family and often your team at work - which is why 部長が 私に 説明してくれました is natural and ～あげました would sound wrong.
With て-form: doing a favour
This is where the exam mostly tests it, because it is how the verbs appear in real life:
- 手伝って あげます - I help someone (use carefully; it can sound condescending to a superior)
- 手伝って くれます - someone helps me
- 手伝って もらいます - I get someone to help me / I receive help
The polite upgrades matter in a workplace: ～ていただけませんか is a very common way to ask a favour of a superior, and ～てくださいました reports one respectfully.
You need to recognise these forms. Keigo basics for work covers how far to take it.
Typical exam item
A: この にもつ、持ちましょうか。 B: ＿＿＿
The correct reply accepts the offer with thanks. Options built from どういたしまして or あげます are wrong because the direction is wrong - the help is coming to B.
That is the whole skill: read the situation, decide who benefits, choose the verb that points that way.
How to practise
Do not memorise the table. Generate sentences about your own week:
- Something a colleague did for you - ～てくれました
- Something you did for a colleague - ～てあげました
- Something you asked someone to do - ～てもらいました
Five sentences a day for a week and the direction becomes intuitive. The te-form guide covers the form itself if that is still shaky, and the grammar you need puts it in the context of the rest of the exam’s grammar.
Then check it under pressure with the free exam demo.