Episode 45
Going To Do — ～に行く
Learn the に行く pattern to say what you're going somewhere to do — go shopping, go for a walk, go to eat — in this 6-minute Japanese lesson.
You know how to go somewhere. You know how to do things. Episode 45 combines both: the に行く pattern says what you're going somewhere to do. Go shopping. Go for a walk. Go to eat. One clean structure covers all of it.
What You'll Learn#
Go for the purpose of the activity (買い物に行く = go shopping, 散歩に行く = go for a walk)
買い物に行きます (I'm going shopping), 食事に行きましょう (let's go out to eat)
Go to do the verb action (食べに行く = go to eat, 飲みに行く = go for drinks)
食べに行きます (I'm going to eat), 飲みに行きましょう (let's go for drinks)
New vocabulary: 買い物 (shopping), 食事 (a meal, dining out), 散歩 (a walk), 旅行 (travel, a trip), 先月 (last month), に行く (go to do)
Lesson Transcript#
The Pattern: Activity + に + 行く#
The に行く construction has three pieces. First: the activity — either an activity noun or a verb stem. Second: the purpose particle に. Third: the verb 行く to go.
The particle に here marks purpose — your destination isn't just a place, it's an intention. You're going directed toward the activity.
Compare this to English "go for a walk" or "go for dinner." The word "for" in those phrases does exactly what the purpose particle に does here. Same concept, different position in the sentence.
Activity Noun Version#
These three nouns work directly with the pattern — no modification needed:
| Noun | Reading | + に行く | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 買い物 | かいもの | 買い物に行く | go shopping |
| 食事 | しょくじ | 食事に行く | go out to eat |
| 散歩 | さんぽ | 散歩に行く | go for a walk |
I go shopping every Saturday.
毎週土曜日に買い物に行きます。
毎週土曜日に買い物に行く。
Notice the two に particles in that sentence. The first に after 土曜日 is the time particle — it marks when. The second に after 買い物 is today's purpose particle — it marks what you're going to do. Same particle, two different jobs.
Verb Stem Version#
You can also use the verb stem — the form before ます — in place of an activity noun. The stem of 食べる is 食べ. The stem of 飲む is 飲み.
| Verb | Stem | + に行く | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 食べる | 食べ | 食べに行く | go to eat |
| 飲む | 飲み | 飲みに行く | go for drinks |
| 見る | 見 | 見に行く | go to see |
The noun version sounds slightly more formal. The verb stem version is direct and casual — and sounds natural between friends.
I went to see a concert with my friends.
友達とコンサートを見に行きました。
友達とコンサートを見に行った。
Tense Variations#
The activity noun and the purpose particle に stay fixed. Only the ending on 行く changes:
| Ending | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 行きます | polite present/future | going to do / will go to do |
| 行きました | polite past | went to do |
| 行きたい | want-to form | want to go to do |
| 行くつもり | intention form | plan to go to do |
I went traveling last month.
先月旅行に行きました。
先月旅行に行った。
Key Takeaway
The に行く pattern has two forms: activity noun plus に plus 行く, and verb stem plus に plus 行く. The particle に marks purpose — you're going directed toward an activity. Conjugate 行く in any tense you need. Everything before the purpose に stays the same.
Practice に行く
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