〜かけ / 〜かける: Half-Done, Partway Through (N3 Grammar)
The layer it adds to the verb
〜かけ lays one extra shade over the verb it attaches to: the action has begun but isn't complete — you stopped partway, or were on the verge of doing it. On its own a verb tells you the action happened; add かけ and it zooms in on the moment between starting and finishing. Think "half-…" or "in the middle of …ing," incomplete by definition.
Which verbs it pairs with, and how it attaches
かけ glues onto the ます-stem. Drop the ます from the polite form to get the stem, then add かけ:
| Base verb | ます-stem | 〜かけ form |
|---|---|---|
| 食べる (eat) | 食べ | 食べかけ / 食べかけの / 食べかけだ |
| 読む (read) | 読み | 読みかけ / 読みかけの本 |
| 言う (say) | 言い | 言いかけた / 言いかける |
| 死ぬ (die) | 死に | 死にかけた / 死にかけの |
| やる (do) | やり | やりかけの仕事 |
Three frames cover almost everything:
- 〜かけの + noun — modifies a noun: 飲みかけのコーヒー ("a half-drunk coffee").
- 〜かけだ — ends the sentence: この仕事はまだやりかけだ ("this job is still half-done").
- 〜かける (verb) — conjugates like a verb: 言いかけて…, 倒れかけた ("almost collapsed").
The kind of verb matters, too. Verbs you can pause mid-stream (食べる, 読む, 言う) give the "half-done" reading; instantaneous, point-of-no-return verbs (死ぬ, 倒れる, 消える) reroute 〜かける toward "nearly / on the verge of."
In use
Actions you can genuinely stop halfway give the "partway through" reading:
テーブルに食べかけのパンが置いてある。
テーブルに たべかけの パンが おいて ある。
There's a half-eaten piece of bread left on the table.
食べかけの + noun = half-eaten ~.
ヤッタンは読みかけの本をかばんに入れた。
ヤッタンは よみかけの ほんを かばんに いれた。
Yattan put the book he was partway through into his bag.
モチは何か言いかけて、急にやめた。
モチは なにか いいかけて、きゅうに やめた。
Mochi started to say something and suddenly stopped.
言いかけて = began to speak, then broke off.
先生、レポートはまだ書きかけです。
せんせい、レポートは まだ かきかけです。
Teacher, my report is still only half-written.
書きかけです = polite 〜かけだ.
With verbs that have no "halfway," the same suffix lands on "almost / on the verge of":
弟は階段で転んで、けがをしかけた。
おとうとは かいだんで ころんで、けがを しかけた。
My little brother tripped on the stairs and nearly got hurt.
〜かけた often means 'almost did / was about to.'
その犬は道で死にかけていたが、助かった。
その いぬは みちで しにかけて いたが、たすかった。
The dog was on the verge of dying in the road, but it survived.
死にかけていた = was nearly dying.
You'll also meet 〜かけている, which adds the て-いる aspect: 言いかけている ("is in the middle of starting to say"). It overlaps heavily with plain 〜かける and 〜かけだ; the difference is subtle, and for N3 you can treat 食べかけだ and 食べかけている as both meaning "it's half-eaten / partway." See 〜ている for the underlying aspect.
How it differs from the plain verb and its neighbours
Against the plain verb, かけ is precisely the "not finished" marker: 食べかけのパン is not eaten up; it's half-eaten. When the action really is complete, that's the job of 〜てしまう (食べてしまった = "ate it all up"), not かけ.
Against 〜ながら: 〜ながら means doing two things at the same time (音楽を聞きながら勉強する = "study while listening to music"). 〜かけ is not simultaneity — it's an action left unfinished. 食べかけのパン is bread that was abandoned mid-bite, not bread eaten "while" doing something else.
And don't collide it with the unrelated everyday verb かける ("to hang, to put on, to make a call," etc. — see /vocabulary/n5/kakeru). That かける stands alone as its own verb; the grammar 〜かける only appears glued to a ます-stem. メガネをかける ("put on glasses") is the vocabulary verb, while 言いかける ("start to say") is the grammar pattern. One more attachment trap: it's the ます-stem + かけ — 読みかけ (✓), never 読むかけ or 読んでかけ (✗).
The short version
- 〜かけ = an action started but not finished; partway through.
- Form: ます-stem + かけ → 〜かけの (noun), 〜かけだ (sentence end), 〜かける (verb).
- With 死ぬ・倒れる etc., 〜かけた = "nearly / on the verge of."
- Not 〜ながら ("while"), and not the standalone verb かける ("to hang/wear/call").
Practice it
Choose the correct 〜かけ form (stem + かけの / かけだ / かけた).
＿＿＿に入れるのに最もよいものを選びなさい。
机の上に＿＿＿パンがある。
Frequently asked questions
What does 〜かけ mean?
It marks an action that was started but not finished — partway through. 読みかけの本 is 'a book I'm in the middle of'; 食べかけのパン is 'half-eaten bread.'
How do I form 〜かけ?
Take the verb's ます-stem and add かけ: 食べる → 食べ → 食べかけ. Then use 〜かけの before a noun, 〜かけだ to end a sentence, or the verb 〜かける.
Is 〜かけ the same as 〜ながら?
No. 〜ながら means doing two actions at the same time ('while'). 〜かけ means an action was started and left unfinished. 食べかけのパン is bread abandoned mid-bite, not bread eaten 'while' doing something.
What does 死にかける mean?
Literally 'die' + かける. With verbs like 死ぬ or 倒れる, 〜かける leans toward 'nearly / on the verge of': 死にかけた = 'nearly died / was on the verge of dying.'
Where 〜かけ / 〜かける fits
Shaky on this? Get these solid first
- 〜ます · N5 — 〜ます is the polite verb ending. Learn ます (non-past), ません (negative), ました (past), and ませんでした (past negative), how to build the stem, and when to be polite.
Don't confuse it with
- 〜ている · N5 — 〜ている has two big jobs: an ongoing action ('is doing') and a continuing state ('is in a state'). Learn when it means which, how to form it, and see clear examples.
Once this clicks, go on to
- 〜てしまう · N4 — 〜てしまう adds 'finish completely' or 'oops, ended up' to a verb. Learn the て-form formation, the regret nuance, past 〜てしまった, and the casual contractions 〜ちゃう / 〜じゃう.
More N3 grammar to explore
Keep going with related patterns at the same level:
- 〜うちに — 〜うちに means 'while a state lasts' — do something before it changes: 明るいうちに帰ろう. Learn 〜ないうちに ('before X happens'), 〜ているうちに, and うちに vs 間に.
- 〜ことだ — 〜ことだ gives direct, practical advice — 'the best thing is to' / 'you should.' Learn the formation, how it differs from べき and the nominalizer こと, and common mistakes.
- 〜まま — 〜まま means a state stays unchanged while something else happens: 電気をつけたまま寝た ('slept with the light on'). Learn た/ない/noun/adjective forms and そのまま.
- 〜ながら（も） — The concessive 〜ながら（も） means 'although / even though,' pointing out a contradiction between two facts about the same subject: 彼は忙しいながら、健康に気をつけない. Not to be confused with the 'while doing' ながら.
- 〜によると/によれば — によると and によれば both mean 'according to,' citing the source of information a sentence is based on (天気予報によると、明日は雨だそうだ). The sentence almost always ends in a hearsay form like そうだ or らしい.
- 〜たらいい — 〜たらいい attaches to the た-form of a verb to mean 'it would be good/nice if,' 'I wish,' or (as a question) 'what should I do' — もっと時間があったらいいのに ('I wish there were more time'). It softly expresses a hope or asks for advice.