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What is the difference in usage between 行ったから and 行ってから and 行くから?

Is there a sense of sequence implied in one and not the other?

In the following examples where would i be buying the book and where would i be saying this? Like in I bought the book after i arrived in america.

  • アメリカに行くから本を買う
  • アメリカに行ってから本を買う
  • アメリカに行ったから本を買う
Mark Hosang
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2 Answers2

15

~ってから shows "one after another".
行ってから means "after I go".

~ったから shows "cause & effect".
行ったから means "because I went".

Note that 行くから is also valid, which means "because I (plan to) go"

EDIT:

To answer additional question added by OP:

アメリカに行くから本を買う

I'm going to buy the book because I'm going to America. -> You buy the book before you go, and you buy it because you are going.

アメリカに行ってから本を買う

I'm going to buy the book after I go to America. -> You buy the book after you go. The reason you buy the book may not be related to you going there at all.

アメリカに行ったから本を買う

I'm going to buy the book because I went to America. -> You buy the book after you went, and you buy it because you went.

Note: in 行ってから本を買う the location where you buy the book can be in America or after you return back to your place. You may need to use specify あそこで to show that you are going to buy the book in America, or use 行って来て to show that you are going to buy it after you return home.

Lukman
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  • +1 for adding 行くから – Mark Hosang Jun 02 '11 at 04:36
  • so if i had 海外に行くから本を買う　and 海外に行ってから本を買う, the difference would be buying the book before i go abroad for the first one and buying the book after i have arrived in the foreign country? – Mark Hosang Jun 02 '11 at 04:39
  • @Mark Yes. You got the difference right :) Though in your first example, it is for the very reason of going abroad that you are going to buy the book (some travelers' guide book or something). – Lukman Jun 02 '11 at 04:46
  • and 行ってから would be i am in Japan, saying i will buy a book once i am in america and 行ったから would be, because i went to america i bought a book (though don't know if i bought it in america or japan) sorry, this has been something i've struggled with a very long time. – Mark Hosang Jun 02 '11 at 04:56
  • @Mark, as it is 買う, it means you *will* buy it because and after going to and getting back from America. If you were still in America you'd say 来たから。 –  Jun 27 '11 at 15:09
5

行った is the past tense, 行って is the -te form.

  • 行ったから - because (I) went, から here means "because"
    • 僕が行ったから君やってよ - You do it, because I (already) went (to get something).
  • 行ってから - after (I) go, から here means "from" or "after"
    • それは行ってから考えましょう - Let's think about this after we go (there).
Mark Hosang
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deceze
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