Posted inN4 Grammar

Mastering 「〜たらいいですか」: Asking for Advice in Japanese (N4 Grammar)

Posted inN4 Grammar
Japanese Grammar Template
Meaning & Usage

✨ Basic Meaning

“What would be good to do?” or “What should I do?”

🎯 Primary Function

To politely ask someone for advice or suggestions on what action to take or what choice to make in a particular situation.

📋 Grammar Structure

Verb (~ta form) + ら いいですか い-adjective (~katta form) + ら いいですか な-adjective (~dattara) + いいですか Noun (~dattara) + いいですか

🎭 Usage Contexts

🏢 Formal Situations

Can be used, but more formal expressions might be preferred depending on the level of formality.

😊 Informal Situations

Commonly used among friends, family, or colleagues when seeking their opinion.

✍️ Written Language

Used in informal writing like emails to friends or social media.

🗣️ Spoken Language

Very frequently used in everyday conversation.

💡 Common Applications

Asking for directions or how to get somewhere.
When you are lost or unsure which route to take.
Example: すみません、駅へはどう行ったらいいですか。 (Sumimasen, eki e wa dō ittara ii desu ka?) – Excuse me, how should I get to the station?
Seeking recommendations.
When deciding what to buy, eat, or where to go.
Example: この本、面白そうですね。次にどの本を読んだらいいですか。 (Kono hon, omoshirosō desu ne. Tsugi ni dono hon o yondara ii desu ka?) – This book looks interesting. Which book should I read next?
Asking for a solution to a problem.
When you have a problem and need advice on how to solve it.
Example: 日本語がうまく話せません。どうしたらいいですか。 (Nihongo ga umaku hanasemasen. Dō shitara ii desu ka?) – I can’t speak Japanese well. What should I do?
📊
Frequency
Very common in daily conversation.
🎚️
Difficulty
Relatively easy for N4 learners, main challenge is conjugating to the ~tara form.
Example Sentences
旅行に行きたいんですが、どこに行ったらいいですか。
I want to go on a trip, where should I go?
この漢字が分かりません。先生に聞いたらいいですか。
I don’t understand this kanji. Should I ask the teacher?
このシャツ、少し大きいですね。もっと小さいかったらいいですか。
This shirt is a little big, isn’t it? Would it be better if it were smaller?
Notes & Nuances

📌 Important Points

Used for asking for advice or suggestions.
The main function is to solicit opinions from the listener about what is the best course of action.
Example: 明日何をしたらいいですか？ (Ashita nani o shitara ii desu ka?) – What should I do tomorrow? (Asking for advice)
Based on the conditional ~たら form.
The conjugation requires changing the preceding word (verb, adjective, noun) into its ~tara conditional form.
Example: 行く (iku) -> 行ったら (ittara) / 高い (takai) -> 高かったら (takakattara)

⚠️ Common Mistakes

❌ Using the dictionary form or ~masu form instead of ~ta form.
✅ Always use the ~ta form of the verb before 〜たら.
Incorrect: 食べますたらいいですか (Tabemasu tara ii desu ka) / Correct: 食べたらいいですか (Tabetara ii desu ka)
❌ Incorrectly conjugating i-adjectives or na-adjectives.
✅ Use ~katta for i-adjectives and ~dattara for na-adjectives and nouns.
Incorrect: 大きいだったらいいですか (Ōkii dattara ii desu ka) / Correct: 大きかったらいいですか (Ōkikattara ii desu ka)

🏛️ Cultural Context

Politeness Level: Polite enough for general use, but not the most formal.
Social Situations: Appropriate when asking for advice from friends, colleagues, superiors, or strangers in common situations (e.g., asking for directions).
Regional Variations: The core structure is standard, but intonation or preceding/following phrases might vary.

🔍 Subtle Differences

〜たらいいですか vs 〜ほうがいいです
〜たらいいですか asks for the listener’s suggestion on *what* would be good. 〜ほうがいいです *suggests* a specific action is *better* than another option (often from the speaker’s perspective).
When to use: Use 〜たらいいですか when you don’t know what to do and need advice. Use 〜ほうがいいです when you want to recommend a specific action to someone.
〜たらいいですか vs 〜といいです
〜たらいいですか asks for advice. 〜といいです expresses a hope or a gentle suggestion from the speaker about what *they* think would be good, but it’s not typically used to directly ask for advice from the listener.
When to use: Use 〜たらいいですか to ask for advice. Use 〜といいです to express hope or make a gentle, non-demanding suggestion.
〜たらいいですか vs 〜たらどうですか
〜たらいいですか is a direct question asking for suggestions. 〜たらどうですか is also a suggestion but phrased as a question, implying “How about doing X?”. It’s more direct in offering a specific idea rather than broadly asking “what is good?”.
When to use: Use 〜たらいいですか when you are seeking any suggestion. Use 〜たらどうですか when you want to suggest a specific action to someone in a polite way.

📝 Conjugation Notes

Verbs: Change to ~ta form (e.g., 読む -> 読んだ, 行く -> 行った). I-adjectives: Remove ~い, add ~かった (e.g., 高い -> 高かった). Na-adjectives & Nouns: Add 〜だったら (e.g., 静か -> 静かだったら, 学生 -> 学生だったら).

🔊 Pronunciation Tips

Pronounced as “tara ii desu ka”. The “ii” is often pronounced with a slight pause or emphasis. Desu ka is standard polite question pronunciation.

🧠 Memory Tips

Think of 「たら」 as “if/when [condition is met]”, and 「いいですか」 as “is it good?”. So, “If I do X, is it good?” or “What would be good if I did X?”. Connect it to “asking for a good plan/action”.

Practice Exercises
風邪をひきました。どう____いいですか。
したら
するなら
すれば
して
この映画、どう____思いますか。
だったら
見たら
見れば
見るなら
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