～っぱなし
leave (on / undone)
～っぱなし attaches to the ます-stem of a verb and means that something was put into a state and then left that way. It comes from the verb 放す（はなす）, “to let go”, so the image is doing something and then letting go of it.
English equivalents are “leave (the light) on”, “leave (the door) open”, or doing something “the whole time without a break”. Unlike ～たまま, which neutrally describes an unchanged state, ～っぱなし usually carries a tone of carelessness or complaint.
1. Leaving something in a state (and forgetting it)
With verbs like つける, 開ける, or 出す, ～っぱなし means someone did the action and neglected to undo it. It is often followed by にする (“leave it that way”).
電気をつけっぱなしにする。
“I leave the light on.”
- 電気（でんき）= the light
- を = object marker
- つけっぱなし = left turned on (from つける, to turn on)
- にする = leave it (in that state)
2. A situation that continues without a break
With verbs like 立つ or 座る, ～っぱなし means the situation went on the whole time, usually to the speaker's discomfort.
朝からずっと立ちっぱなしだった。
“I was on my feet the whole time, ever since morning.”
- 朝（あさ）= morning
- から = from, since
- ずっと = the whole time
- 立ちっぱなし（たちっぱなし）= standing without a break
- だった = was
How to form it
Verb ます-stem + っぱなし
- つける = to turn on → つけっぱなし = left on
- 開ける（あける）= to open → 開けっぱなし（あけっぱなし）= left open
- 出す（だす）= to let out, turn on (water) → 出しっぱなし（だしっぱなし）= left running
Key idea
～っぱなし means something was started and then abandoned in that state like the light stays on, the water keeps running, you stay on your feet. The pattern almost always hints that someone should have done something about it.
Other N2 grammar
Updated .