Grammar · Particles

へ, direction

The pattern

[Place] へ行く

[Place] e 行く

へ marks direction, and it is said 'e', not 'he'. With movement verbs it is close to interchangeable with に; へ leans slightly more towards 'towards' and に towards 'to'.

The mistake to avoid

Like は, this particle keeps an old pronunciation. へ is 'e' as a particle and 'he' inside a word.

Examples

Rōmaji help

東京へ行きます。

とうきょうへいきます。

tōkyō e ikimasu.

I am going to Tokyo.

どちらへ。

dochira e.

Where are you off to?

家へ帰ります。

いえへかえります。

ie e kaerimasu.

I am heading home.

どこへ行きますか。

どこへいきますか。

doko e ikimasu ka.

Where are you going?