I encountered the sentence:

> 両親が私にはがきを送ってくれた。

I understand that: 送って translates to a verb meaning "to send", or I assume in
this case "sending" due to the "te-form" being used.

I also understand that: くれた translates to a verb meaning "to give (to be
given)"

So a literal translation of 両親が私にはがきを送ってくれた would mean:

> My parents, to me, a postcard, Sending and given.

or..

> My parents sent and gave me a postcard.

So I don't quite understand why you must say "they sent and gave me a
postcard" instead of just "they sent me a postcard". For example

> 両親が私にはがきを送った。

Is there a grammatical/logical explanation for this? Or is this simply just
how it's done for no reason?
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2018-03-07T17:01:46.760
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2018-03-07T20:35:24.790
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question
grammar expressions subsidiary-verbs giving-and-receiving
送ってくれた : Why is both "sending" and "giving" being used together here?
There's a reason. あげる、くれる、and もらう are used not only to mean "give" and
"receive," but also as auxiliary verbs meaning "to do something for someone's
benefit" （あげる）and "to have something done for your benefit" (くれる and もらう).
When used in this sense, these verbs always attach to the て form of a verb.

[Here's more information on てくれる
specifically](http://japanesetest4you.com/flashcard/learn-
jlpt-n4-grammar-%E3%81%A6%E3%81%8F%E3%82%8C%E3%82%8B-te-kureru/).

So the sentence you offered means "My parents (did me the favor of) sending me
a postcard." This simply isn't marked in English in the same way, but if you
leave out the くれる in Japanese, it sounds unnatural, like you're making a
flatly declarative report.

Natural use of these helping verbs in Japanese takes a _long_ time to master
for Japanese learners. Enjoy the journey.
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2018-03-07T17:23:56.997
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answer