How to Use ～てみる to Say “Try Doing Something”

When you’re learning Japanese, you might want to say things like “I tried eating sushi” or “Why don’t you try speaking Japanese?” In Japanese, we use ～てみる to express the idea of trying to do something.

Let’s break it down and learn how to use it in daily conversation!

✅ What is ～てみる?

The grammar point ～てみる is used when you try something and see what happens. It’s like saying “try doing [something]” in English.

🔹 Verb (て-form) + みる
🔸 Example: 食たべてみる (try eating), 行いってみる (try going), 読よんでみる (try reading)

📘 Examples in Action

Let’s take a look at some simple and useful examples:

🍣 食たべてみる – Try eating

寿司すしを食たべてみました。
→ I tried eating sushi.

🚶 行いってみる – Try going

その店みせに行いってみます。
→ I’ll try going to that store.

🗣️ 話はなしてみる – Try speaking

日本語にほんごで話はなしてみてください。
→ Please try speaking in Japanese.

🔄 How to Change the Verb

Use the て-form of the verb, then just add みる.

Dictionary Form	て-form	+ みる	Meaning
食たべる (to eat)	食たべて	食たべてみる	try eating
行いく (to go)	行いって	行いってみる	try going
飲のむ (to drink)	飲のんで	飲のんでみる	try drinking
話はなす (to speak)	話はなして	話はなしてみる	try speaking

✅ Note: みる here is not the verb 見みる (to see), even though it sounds the same. It acts like a helping verb to mean “try doing.”

📝 Practice Sentences

Can you complete these with the correct て-form + みる?

初はじめてラーメンを（＿＿＿）。
この漢字かんじを（＿＿＿）ください。
富士山ふじさんに（＿＿＿）たいです。

🎯 Bonus Tip: 〜てみたい = Want to try

Want to express “I want to try doing something”? Just add たい to 〜てみる!

着物きものを着きてみたいです。
→ I want to try wearing a kimono.

🗨️ Let’s Practice!

Write a sentence using ～てみる!
What’s something new you’ve tried recently? Or something you want to try in Japanese?

Examples:

日本にほんのカレーを作つくってみました！🍛
日本語にほんごで日記にっきを書かいてみたいです✏️

Learning ～てみる opens up so many ways to express curiosity and new experiences. So go ahead—try using ～てみる in your next Japanese conversation!

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