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The Complete Guide to Learning Japanese
Disclaimer: This is still a work in progress!

What is a complete guide to Japanese?
Despite what many are lead to believe, learning Japanese is not signiIicantly more diIIicult than learning any
other language. The truth is mastering any Ioreign language is quite an endeavor. II you think about it, you are
essentially taking everything you've learned in liIe and re-learning it in a completely diIIerent way. Obviously, no
single book can really claim to teach you everything about a language including all the vocabulary a Iluent adult
commonly obtains during her liIe. So what do I mean by a complete guide to Japanese?
Most Japanese textbooks only go over a small subset oI what you need to learn Japanese, typically covering a
certain amount oI grammar and vocabulary with a smattering oI dialogues and readings. However, mastering a
language requires much more than just learning grammar and vocabulary. What most Japanese textbooks Iail to
recognize is that they can't possibly hope to cover all the necessary vocabulary and kanji (Chinese characters) to
obtain Iull Iluency. This guide Iully recognizes that it cannot teach you everythingword by word and character
by character. Instead, it will give you a solid understanding oI the Iundamentals with a wide collection oI
dialogues and examples. In addition, it will go over various techniques and tools toenable you to teach yourselI.
Essentially, this book is a guide on how you can learn Japanese to complete Iluency by actually using Japanese in
the areas oI reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
Another important distinction in the complete guide is that it does not try to hide or avoid more casual but
perIectly acceptable aspects oI the language. Many textbooks oIten avoid styles oI speech and vocabulary you
would normally use regularly with close Iriends, Iamily, and acquaintances! In this guide, you will be introduced
to all aspects oI the language based on real-world practicality and useIulness; not on an artiIicial, Iiltered version
oI what others consider to be "proper" Japanese.
Resources and Tools
There are a large number oI useIul tools on the web Ior learning Japanese. Not only are there excellent online
dictionaries, which are oIten better than many print dictionaries, there are also great tools and social networking
sites Ior online collaboration and language study.
In order to Iully utilize these online resources or iI you're reading this book online, you'll need to setup your
computer to support Japanese.
You can see a Iull list oI these resources and instructions on how to setup your computer at the Iollowing link:
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/resources
Corrections
I'm currently writing this as quickly as possible without a lot oI prooIreading so t here WILL be many typos and
mistakes Ior the Iirst Iew revisions. Please Ieel Iree to point out any mistakes in the comments. I may delete your
comment aIter making the correction to keep the comment sections clean Ior more in-depth discussion but I do
appreciate them very much!!
Table of Contents
Writing Systems and Pronunciation
The Scripts
The Japanese writing system is comprised oI three main written scripts: Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji.
Hiragana is the main phonetic writing system used to represent every distinct sound in Japanese. Because oI its
phonetic nature, we will Iirst learn Hiragana to also learn how to pronounce all the sounds in the Japanese
language.
While Katakana represents the same sounds as Hiragana, it is mainly used to represent words imported Irom
other languages.
Kanji, which are Chinese characters adapted Ior Japanese, are heavily used in writing. There are no spaces in
Japanese so Kanji is necessary in order to separate the words within a sentence. Kanji is also useIul Ior
distinguishing homophones, which occurs quite oIten given the limited number oI dist inct sounds in Japanese.
Pronunciation
In the next section, we will learn all the characters in Hiragana and how to pronounce them. As we will see,
every character in Hiragana (and the Katakana equivalent) corresponds to a speciIic sound. This makes
pronunciation very easy as each letter has exactly one pronunciation. However, because there are relatively Iew
distinct sounds in the Japanese language, you must pay extra attention to proper intonation.
Unlike English pronunciation which is based on accents, Japanese pronunciation is based on alterations between
a high and low pitch. For example, homophones can have diIIerent pitches oI low and high tones resulting in a
slightly diIIerent sound despite sharing the same pronunciation. The biggest obstacl e Ior obtaining proper and
natural sounding speech is incorrect intonation. ThereIore, as you listen to Japanese and begin to imitate the
sounds, it is very important that you pay attention to pitch in order to sound like a native speaker.
Hiragana
The table below represents the entire Hiragana syllabary categorized by the consonant and vowel sounds. With
the exception oI a Iew sounds (as shown by the pronunciation in parentheses), most sounds in Japanese are
easily represented by a vowel or consonant-vowel. There is also one consonant-only sound: .
Hiragana - Click Ior stroke order and sound
n w r y m h n t s k
(n)
a

(chi)

(shi)
i

(Iu)
(tsu)
u
e

(o)
o
To understand how this chart works, let's start by looking at the right-most column,which are all the vowel-only
sounds.
a
i
u
e
o
Here are some sample words Ior reading practice.
Example: - love (read as "ai")
- to meet 1.
- house 2.
- nephew 3.
- above 4.
- to say 5.
Each additional column represents a consonant sound with each oI the Iive vowel sounds. For example, the "k"
column has the Iollowing sounds.
ka
ki
ku
ke
ko
is the only character with no vowel sound. It adds an "n" sound as shown in the examples below.
- gold (read as "kin")
- woman; girl (read as "on-na")
- music (read as "on-ga-ku")
Here are my recommendations Ior learning how to read, write, hear, and say the characters and sounds in
Hiragana.
Reading: You'll be getting plenty oI reading practice with the material in this book.
Writing: You'll need to develop muscle memory so use regular pen and paper. Below are handy PDFs Ior
Hiragana writing practice.
Hiragana trace sheets
japanese-lesson.com
Hiroshi & Sakura
Hearing: You can listen to the pronunciation Ior each character by clicking on it in the Iirst chart. II your
browser doesn't support audio, you can also download them at http://www.guidetojapanese.org/audio
/basicsounds.zip. There are also other Iree resources with audio samples.
Speaking:Practice repeating the sounds. I recommend recording yourselI to get an accurate idea oI what
you sound like. Pay careIul attention to the "r" sounds!
While most oI the sounds are pretty straightIorward, the "r" sounds deserve careIul attention Ior English
speakers because there is no equivalent sound in English. It is more similar to the "r" sound in Spanish.
What works Ior some English speakers (even iI it may not be technically correct) is to shape the lips
something like the sound that is made Ior the English "r," but to make the sound with a single trill or
Ilap oI the tongue against the Iront oI the palate.
Katakana
Katakana, as already mentioned, is mainly used to represent words imported Irom other languages. We've
already learned all the sounds when we learned Hiragana. All you need to learn is a diIIerent way oI writing
them.
Katakana - Click Ior stroke order and sound
n w r y m h n t s k
(n)
a

(chi)

(shi)
i

(Iu)
(tsu)
u
e

*
(o)
o
* rarely used
Due to the straight lines and relatively Iew strokes, there are many characters in Katakana that look very similar.
In particular, and . You should pay careIul attention to the stroke order and
direction. You may also notice that the Katakana is virtually identical to its Hiragana counterpart
. They are in Iact, written pretty much the same way. Below are handy PDFs Ior writing practice.
Katakana trace sheets
japanese-lesson.com
Hiroshi & Sakura
English words in Japanese
Many words Irom Ioreign languages, particularly English, have become part oI the Japanese language via
Katakana throughout the years. However, there are relatively Iew distinct sounds in Japanese and only Iive
vowel sounds. As a result, these words usually don't bear much resemblance to their original pronunciations. An
important thing to remember is to stay true to the Japanese pronunciation and completely Iorget how it's really
supposed to be pronounced. To give you an idea, here is a short list oI Ioreign words and their Japanese
equivalents.
Sample Katakana Words
English Japanese
America
Russia
bus
motorcycle
French Iries (Iried potato)
Additional Sounds
Though we have covered all the distinct characters in both Hiragana and Katakana, there are additional
variations and sounds that still remain to be learned.
Voiced Consonants
Voiced consonants are consonant sounds that require a voice, creating a vibration in your throat. A number oI
consonant sounds in Hiragana and Katakana can be changed to their voiced counterpart by adding two small
dashes to the upper-right corner oI the character; namely the "k", "s", "t", and "h" consonant sounds. There is
also a semi-voiced consonant sound "p", which is created by putting a small circle in the upper-right corner oI the
"h" characters.
Voiced Hiragana -
Click Ior Sound
p b d z g
a

(ji)

(ji)
i

(dzu)
u
e
o
Voiced Katakana -
Click Ior Sound
p b d z g
a

(ji)

(ji)
i

(dzu)
u
e
o
Y-vowel sounds
A consonant can precede the three y-sounds: and . This is done by attaching a small,
halI-size version oI the y-sounds to the consonanti sounds as you can see in the table below.
All small and combinations in Hiragana - Click Ior
Sound
p b j g r m h n c s k
ya
yu
yo
All small and combinations in Katakana - Click Ior
Sound
p b j g r m h n c s k
ya
yu
yo
Hard Consonant Sounds
While no single letter ends in a consonant sound except , Japanese does have a way to carry over
the next consonant sound back with a small . This can be used with the consonants "p, k, t, s" to create a
hard stop.
For example, (meaning "person") would normally be read as "hi-to". However, by adding a small
: , the "t" consonant sound is carried back and is pronounced "hit-to" (meaning "hit").
Here are some more examples.
(to-rak-ku) - truck 1.
(zas-shi) - magazine 2.
(kap-pu) - cup 3.
The Long Vowel Sound
We will now go over the long vowel sound which is simply extending the duration oI avowel sound. You can
extend the vowel sound oI a character by adding either or depending on the vowel as
shown in the Iollowing chart.
Extending Vowel Sounds
Vowel Sound Extended by
/ a /
/ i / e /
/ u / o /
For example, iI you wanted to create an extended vowel sound Irom , you would add to create
. Other examples would include: , , , ,
and so on. The reason Ior this is quite simple. Try saying and separately. Then
say them in succession as Iast as you can. You'll notice that it's easier to drag out the vowel.
It's important to make sure you hold the vowel sound to the Iull length oI both characters because there are many
similar words that are only diIIerent by the length oI the vowel. For example, means "here" while
means "High school".
Here is a short list oI example words with long vowel sounds. The long vowel sound i s highlighted.
(ga-ku-se) - student 1.
(sen-se) - teacher 2.
(kyo) - today 3.
(o-ha-yo) - good morning 4.
(o-ka-san) - mother 5.
There are also a small number oI exceptions where an "e" vowel sound is extended by adding or an "o"
vowel sound is extended with . We'll see example oI these words in later sections.
Long vowel sounds in Katakana are much easier. You simply need to use a dash: .
(tsu-a) - tour 1.
(me-ru) - email 2.
(ke-ki) - cake 3.
Additional Katakana Sounds
is the only sound that is pronounced with a "I" sound, Ior example (Iuton) or
(Fuji). That's Iine in Japanese because there are no words with other "I" sounds such as "Ia", "Ii", or "Io".
However, it's problem when converting Ioreign words such as "Iork" into Katakana.
This problem was solved by using small vowel sounds. For example, the small can be attached to
to create (Io). "Fork" then becomes . There are other gaps that are Iilled with this
technique. The "v" sounds are also expressed by putting two dashes to the vowel sounds. However, "v" sounds
are rarely used due to the diIIiculty native Japanese speakers have in pronouncing them.
The Iollowing table shows the gaps that were Iilled using these techniques Ior Katakana.
Additional sounds
v w f ch d t j sh
a
i
u
e
o
(so-fa) - soIa 1.
(win-do-u-zu) - Windows (as in MS Windows) 2.
(wok-ka) - vodka 3.
(chek-ku) - check 4.
Kanji
The last and most notorious aspect oI the Japanese written language is Kanji, which are Chinese characters
adapted Ior Japanese. Most words in Japanese are written in Kanji even though they are still pronounced with the
Japanese phonetic sounds represented by Hiragana and Katakana.
Stroke Order
When learning Kanji, it is very important to learn it with the proper stroke order and direction Irom the beginning
in order to avoid developing any bad habits. Japanese learners oIten think that stroke order doesn't matter as long
as the end product looks the same. However, what they don't realize is that there are thousands oI characters and
they are not always meticulously written the way they appear in print. Proper stroke order helps ensure the
characters look recognizable even when you write them quickly or use more cursive styles.
The simpler characters called radicals are oIten reused as components in larger characters. Once you learn the
radical stroke order and get used to the patterns, you'll Iind that it's not diIIicult to Iigure out the correct stroke
order Ior most Kanji.
One good general rule oI thumb is that strokes usually start Irom the top-leIt corner toward the bottom-right. This
means that horizontal strokes are generally written Irom leIt to right and vertical strokes are written Irom top to
bottom. In any case, iI you're not sure about the stroke order, you should always veriIy by looking the character
up in a Kanji dictionary.
Kanji in Vocabulary
There are roughly over 2,000 characters used in modern Japanese so you can imagine that memorizing them
one-by-one as you might Ior syllabaries such as Hiragana does not work very well.
An eIIective strategy Ior mastering Kanji is learning them with new vocabulary within a larger context. This way,
we can associate various contextual inIormation with the character in order to reinI orce memory. Remember that
Kanji, ultimately, is used to represent actual words. So it is important to Iocus not so much on the characters
themselves but the words and vocabulary that include those characters.
In this section, we will learn how Kanji works by learning a Iew common characters and vocabulary.
Kanji Readings
The Iirst Kanji we will learn is the character Ior 'person.' It is a simple two-stroke character where each stroke
starts at the top. By clicking the link to the stroke order, you may have noticed that the character as rendered by
the Iont is not always the same as the hand-written style. This is another important reason to check the stroke
order.
DeIinition: person
Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
Kanji in Japanese can have one or several readings. The reading Ior Kanji is split into two major categories called
kun-yomiand on-yomi . Kun-yomi is the Japanese reading oI the character while on-yomi is based on the original
Chinese pronunciation.
Generally, Kun-yomi is used Ior words that only use one character. The actual word Ior "person" is one example.
Example: - person
Kun-yomi is also used Ior native Japanese words including most adjectives and verbs.
On-yomi, on the other hand, is mostly used Ior words that originate Irom Chinese, which oIten use 2 or more
Kanji. For that reason, on-yomi is oIten written in Katakana. We'll see more examples as we learn more
characters. With , one very useIul example oI an on-yomi is to attach it to names oI countries to describe
nationality.
Example
- American (person)
- French (person)
While most characters will not have multiple kun-yomi or on-yomi, the more common characters such as
will generally have a lot more readings. Here, I only list the ones that are applicable to the vocabulary we
learned. Learning a reading without a context within vocabulary will only create unnecessary conIusion so I do
not recommend learning all the readings at once.
Now that you have the general idea, let's learn some more vocabulary and the Kanji used within them. The stroke
order diagrams with red highlights show you where each stroke starts.
- Japan 1.
- book 2.
DeIinition: sun; day

Stroke Order
On-yomi:
DeIinition: origin; book

Stroke Order
On-yomi:
- student 1.
- teacher 2.
DeIinition: academic
Stroke Order
On-yomi:
DeIinition: ahead; precedence

Stroke Order
On-yomi:
DeIinition: liIe
Stroke Order
On-yomi:
- tall; expensive 1.
- school 2.
- high school 3.
DeIinition: tall; expensive

Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
DeIinition: school
Stroke Order
On-yomi:
- small 1.
- big 2.
- elementary school 3.
- middle school 4.
- college; university 5.
- elementary school student 6.
- middle school student 7.
- college; university student 8.
DeIinition: small
Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
DeIinition: middle; inside

Stroke Order
On-yomi:
DeIinition: large
Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
- country 1.
- China 2.
- Chinese (person) 3.
DeIinition: country
Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
- Japanese language 1.
- Chinese language 2.
- English 3.
- French 4.
- Spanish 5.
DeIinition: England
Stroke Order
On-yomi:
DeIinition: language
Stroke Order
On-yomi:
With only 14 characters, we've managed to learn over 25 words ranging Irom China to elementary school
student! Kanji is usually regarded as a major obstacle but as you can see, you can easily turn it into a valuable
tool iI you learn it in the context oI vocabulary.
Okurigana and changing readings
You may have noticed some words that end with Hiragana such as or . Because those
words are adjectives, the trailing Hiragana, called Okuriganaare needed to perIorm various conjugations without
aIIecting the Kanji. The thing to watch out Ior is remembering exactly where the Kanji ends and Hiragana begins.
For example, you never want to write as .
You may have also noticed that the Kanji readings don't always match the reading in a particular word. For
example, is read as and not . Readings oIten go through these small
transIormations to make pronunciation easier.
Ultimately, you'll want to check the reading Ior any new words you encounter. Fortunately, it has become much
easier to look up new Kanji thanks to online tools and electronic dictionaries. You can Iind a tutorial on how to
use these tools at the Iollowing link
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/resources/Iindingkanji
Different Kanji for similar words
Kanji is oIten used to make subtle distinctions or give a diIIerent shade oI meaningIor a word. In some cases, it
is very important to remember to use the correct Kanji Ior the correct situation. For example, while the adjective
Ior hot is , when used to describe the climate, you must write it as . When you are
describing a hot object or person, you must write it as instead.
DeIinition: hot (Ior climate only)

Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
DeIinition: heat; Iever

Stroke Order
On-yomi:
In other cases, while there is generic Kanji that can be used Ior all situations Ior a given word, the writer may use
a more specialized version Ior stylistic reasons. The examples in this book will generally use the generic and
usually simpler Kanji. II you want to learn more about learning the diIIerent Kanji Ior a single word and new
words in general, go to the tutorial at the Iollowing link:
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/resources/learningwords
Basic numbers and age
1 to 10
Learning the Iirst ten numbers is a one good way to get started in learning any language. For Japanese, it also
allows us to get Iamiliar with some basic and important Kanji. One thing to pay attention to is the Iact that 4 and
7 have two possible pronunciations. The more common is in bold.
Numerals 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Kanji
Reading
11 to 99
As an added bonus, we don't need to learn any more numbers to count up to 99. The tens digit is simply the
number and ten. For example, two-ten is twenty, three-ten is thirty, etc. We will learn higher numbers past 99 in a
later chapter.
Example
- 11 1.
- 20 2.
- 21 3.
- 39 4.
- 40 5.
- 74 6.
- 99 7.
Counters and Age
Let's use the numbers we just learned to talk about our age. In Japanese, we must use counters to count diIIerent
types oI things. The counter Ior counting age is . Because the Kanji is rather diIIicult, it is
also written as (though it's actually a completely diIIerent character)
Counters are simply attached to the end oI the number. However, as we saw in the last section, Kanji readings
can oIten go through small changes to aid pronunciation. The Iollowing digits are read slightly diIIerently when
used with the age counter. The age 20 is also a completely irregular reading.
lrregular readings
- 1 year old 1.
- 8 years old 2.
- 10 years old 3.
- 20 years old 4.
Example
- 20 years old 1.
- 21 years old 2.
- 48 years old 3.
- 70 years old 4.
We will learn many more counters in a later chapter.
Chapter summary and practice
We covered all the sounds in Japanese, how they are written in Hiragana and Katakana, and how Kanji works. In
addition, we also learned numbers up to 99 and how to count age. Let's apply what we've learned to come up
with a simple selI-introduction. The best way to learn a language is to regularly interact in that language and the
only way to do that is to meet Japanese speakers so a selI-introduction is an ideal way to apply what we've
learned in this section.
Learning the expressions
You only need a couple oI Iixed expressions Ior your simple selI-introduction.
1.
Shortened Iorm oI an expression originally meaning "I meet you Ior the Iirst time". it's a standard greeting
similar in intent to "Nice to meet" or "How do you do?"
There is no easy direct translation but it means something along the lines oI "please treat me well" when
used at the end oI an introduction.
2.
Telling people your name
II you haven't done so already, you'll need to decide on what to call yourselI in Japanese. As we've learned,
Japanese has a relatively limited set oI sounds so it's very likely that your name will need to sound very diIIerent
Irom its native pronunciation.
I would recommend asking your teacher or a Japanese speaker Ior help in converting your name to the Katakana
equivalent. You may even want to ask the Iirst person you introduce yourselI to.
II you want to give it a try on your own (like right now), you can try this tutorial on Iinding your name in
Japanese: http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/resources/nameinjapanese
To say you are that name, you need only attach to the name. The pronunciation is usually shortened to
just "dess". We will learn more about in the next chapter.
Example
|name|
(I am) |name|.
(I am) Brown.
1.
(I am) Alice Smith.

2.
In Japan, the last name is given more weight so it is common to just go by your lastname especially in a more
Iormal environment such as the classroom or workplace. When using the Iull name, the last name always comes
Iirst Ior Japanese names. However, it can go either way Ior names Irom countries where the order is reversed.
Putting it all together
Using the Iixed expressions and the vocabulary we learned in the last section, we now have everything we need
Ior our simple selI-introduction.
Below is a short list oI potentially useIul nouns to describe what you are Ior your selI-introduction.Don't Iorget
that you need to add to the country Ior nationality.
- college student 1.
- working adult 2.
- South Korea 3.
- Canada 4.
- England 5.
- Australia 6.
- France 7.
- Spain 8.
- Europe 9.
- Brazil 10.
- Mexico 11.
Nice to meet you. (I am) Alice Smith. (I'm) American. (I'm a) college student. (I'm)18 years old.
Please treat me well.
Other expressions
In addition to practicing your selI-introduction, a good way to practice pronunciation is to use various
expressions Ior diIIerent scenarios. It's ok iI nobody around you speaks Japanese. They'll understand you're hard
at work practicing.
- thank you (polite) 1.
- sorry (polite) 2.
- used beIore eating a meal (lit: I humbly receive) 3.
- used aIter Iinishing a meal (lit: It was a Ieast) 4.
- used when leaving home (lit: I'm going and coming back) 5.
- used as Iarewell Ior someone leaving the house (lit: Go and come back) 6.
- used when returning home 7.
- welcome home 8.
Nouns and Adjectives
At the end oI the last chapter, we used Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji to create a simple selI-introduction. In the
process, we used to express state-oI-being. In this chapter, we will learn more about the state-oI-being
and how to use nouns and adjectives.
State-of-Being
In English, the verb "to be" is used to describe what something is or where it is, Ior example: "He is a student"
and "He is at school". In Japanese, the two are described very diIIerently. The state-oI-being we will learn is used
to describe only what something is and not where it exists.
The state-oI-being is very easy to describe because it is implied within the noun or adjective. There is no need to
use a verb nor even a subject to make a complete sentence in Japanese. Take Ior example, a casual conversation
among Iriends asking, "How are you?"
How are you? (casual)
- healthy; lively
Used as a greeting to indicate whether one is well
A
(Are you) well?
B
(I'm) Iine.
Polite State-of-being
While the previous dialogue may be Iine among close Iriends, you should use the polite Iorm when speaking to a
teacher, a superior such as your boss, or people you're not very Iamiliar with.
For nouns and adjectives, all that is required Ior the polite Iorm is to add to the end oI the sentence.
We did this in our simple selI-introduction in the last section and because it's understood by context that you are
talking about yourselI, there is no need to add a subject.
We can ask questions in the polite Iorm by Iurther adding to . The is a question marker
so a question mark is not necessary. Below is a simple greeting in the polite Iorm.
How are you?
A
(Are you) well?
B
(I'm) well.
Practical Applications
Here's an example oI a casual morning greeting between two classmates and a polite morning greeting with the
teacher.
Casual Morning Greeting
- Good Morning (casual) 1.

Alice: Morning.

Lee: Morning.

Alice: (Are you) well?

Lee: (I'm) good.
Polite Morning Greeting
- Good Morning (polite) 1.
- a honoriIic preIix used Ior politeness and never used when reIerring to oneselI 2.

Teacher: Morning.

Smith: Good Morning!

Teacher: Are (you) well?

Smith: (I'm) well.
You can Iollow a similar model to practice greeting people in the morning. We'll lea rn the expressions Ior
aIternoon and evening greetings in the next section.
Topic Particles
Context plays a powerIul role in Japanese so one word sentences are perIectly Iine Ior simple question and
answers. However, longer and more sophisticated sentences will consist oI many wordsthat perIorm various
grammatical roles. In Japanese, the grammatical role each word plays in a sentence is deIined by particles.
Particles are one or more Hiragana characters that assign a certain grammatical Iunction to the word that comes
beIore it. We'll see how this works by Iirst learning the topic particle.
Topic Particle
As mentioned previously, context is very important in Japanese and is oIten silentlyunderstood by the situation.
However, what you want to talk about may not always be obvious or you may want to change the topic oI the
conversation. For that purpose, the topic particle is used to indicate a newtopic Ior the conversation.
Note: The topic particle while written as , is pronounced .
Example
- this 1.
- what 2.
- that 3.
- pen 4.
- now 5.
- a little (casual) 6.
- busy 7.
- movie 8.
- likable (unlike English "like" is an adjective not a verb) 9.
(As Ior) this, what is (it)?

1.
(As Ior) that, (it's) a pen.

2.
(As Ior) now, busy?

1.
(As Ior) now, (I'm) a little busy.

2.
(As Ior) movie(s), (do you) like? (lit: is likable?)

1.
(I) like (them). (lit: Is likable.)

2.
Greetings
The topic particle is also used in the greetings Ior daytime and evening. The expressions were originally Iull
sentences with a topic meaning, "As Ior today/tonight, how is your mood?" but they were eventually shortened
to just "As Ior today" and "As Ior tonight".
- Good day (pronounced ) 1.
- Good evening (pronounced ) 2.
How are things lately?
- recent; lately 1.
- how 2.
- busy 3.

Teacher: Good day.

Smith: Good day.

Teacher: (As Ior) lately, how (is it)?

Smith: Busy.
lnclusive Topic Particle
The particle is the the same as the topic particle but adds a meaning oI "as well" or "also".
Suspiciously busy
- today 1.
- tomorrow 2.
- day aIter tomorrow 3.
- yes (casual) 4.
- truth; reality 5.

Lee: As Ior today, (are you) busy?

Smith : Yeah, (I'm) busy.

Lee: What about tomorrow?

Smith: Tomorrow is also busy.

Lee: What about the day aIter tomorrow?

Smith: The day aIter tomorrow too.

Lee: Really?(lit: Is it true?)
Addressing People
Addressing other people directly
In Japanese, the word "you" is seldom used to reIer to a person except in the case oI very close relationships.
Most oI the time, you will reIer to people using their name (last name is more polite than Iirst) usually Iollowed
by a name-suIIix. You have probably already heard somewhere at some point. It is the polite
name-suIIix used to reIer to your social superiors, elders, or people you are unIamiliar with. The most common
name-suIIixes are listed below.
- Polite name-suIIix (gender-neutral)
- Casual name-suIIix (generally Ior males)
- Casual name-suIIix (generally Ior Iemales)
II you're not sure which to use to address someone, with the person's last name is generally the saIest
option. You can also always ask the person what they preIer to be called by.
Always sleepy
- yes (polite) 1.
- but 2.
- sleepy 3.
- that 4.
- hardship; rough time; tough 5.
- ok 6.
- always 7.

Teacher: Smith-san, (are you) well?

Smith: Yes, (I'm) Iine.

Teacher: Lee-san, (are you) well?

Lee: Yes, (I'm) Iine. But (I'm) sleepy.

Teacher: That's tough.

Smith: (It's) ok. Lee-san is always sleepy.
Talking about yourself
We already saw that it's usually understood implicitly by context when you're talking about yourselI. However,
there are times you may still want to reIer to yourselI as a topic to say, "As Ior me..." or "me too".
There are several options Ior reIerring to yourselI depending on level oI politeness and gender.
List of different words meaning me, myself, and l
- polite, gender-neutral 1.
- same Kanji as but this reading is only used in very Iormal situations 2.
- polite, masculine 3.
- casual, very Ieminine 4.
- very casual and masculine 5.
How's the pizza?
- pizza 1.
- tasty 2.
- no (casual) 3.

John: As Ior pizza, tasty?

Lee: No.

Alice: As Ior me, tasty.
This short conversation highlights a very important point. The topic only brings up the general topic oI the
conversation and does not necessarily indicate the subject oI any one particular sentence. The last sentence
would be very strange iI it meant "I am tasty". However, because "I" is only a general topic,
Irom the context oI the entire conversation, we know that Alice is saying that as for her, the pizzais tasty.
Addressing family members
We've already encountered the honoriIic preIix in . This preIix is used in all sorts oI words
and comes Irom a Kanji which can be read as either or . However, determining which reading to
use is usually not an issue as this Kanji is usually written in Hiragana.
DeIinition: honorable
Stroke Order
Kun-yomi:
On-yomi:
- money 1.
- rice; meal 2.
- tea 3.
The reason we're looking at it here is because oI how the honoriIic preIix is used to reIer to Iamily members.
We'll learn more about honoriIics in a much later chapter but the basic idea is to use the honoriIic preIix to reIer
to Iamily members oI other people outside your own Iamily. Just like how you should not use to
reIer to yourselI, you would not use honoriIics to reIer to your own Iamily members when speaking with people
outside your Iamily.
However, because honoriIics are relative to the person you're speaking to, you should not use them when
reIerring to members oI your own Iamily while talking to another member oI your Iami ly. This would not likely
happen unless you had Japanese speakers in your Iamily or you have a Japanese host Iamily. We will learn more
about the concept oI inner and outer circle Ior honoriIics in a much later chapter.
The list below is by no means complete and only covers the more common words Ior the primary Iamily
members.
Family member chart
One's own family Someone else's family
Family
Parents
Mother
Father
WiIe
Husband
Older Sister
Older Brother
Younger Sister
Younger Brother
Son
Daughter
Smith's parents
- Yamada (surname) 1.
- Asian (person) 2.
- no 3.
- but 4.
- (one's own) mother 5.
- Japanese (person) 6.
- so 7.
- Iather 8.
- (one's own) Iather 9.
- American (person) 10.
(exp) - I see 11.

Yamada: Smith-san, are (you) Asian (person)?

Smith: No. But, (my) mother is Japanese.

Yamada: Is that so? As Ior (your) Iather?

Smith: (My) Iather is American.

Yamada: I see.
Sentence-Ending Particles
Let's add some liIe to our sentences by using sentence-ending particles. These particles are attached at the very
end oI the sentence to add a diIIerent nuance or tone.
and sentence endings
and are two oI the most Irequently used sentence ending particles.
is used when the speaker is seeking agreement and conIirmation. It adds a tone similar to saying,
"right?" or "isn't it?".
1.
is used when the speaker wants to point something out or make something aware to the listener. It
adds a tone similar to saying, "you know?".
2.
The two can be used together as 3.
Example
- today 1.
- hot (Ior climate/weather only) 2.
- tomorrow 3.
- busy 4.
- ramen 5.
- tasty, delicous 6.
As Ior today, (it's) hot, isn't it?

1.
As Ior tomorrow, (I'm) busy, you know.

2.
As Ior ramen, (it's) tasty you know, isn't it?!

3.
You look young for a teacher
- Tanaka (surname) 1.
- no 2.
- very 3.
- young 4.
- how old 5.
- that 6.
- secret 7.

Smith: Nice to meet you. (I'm) Smith.

Tanaka: Nice to meet you. (I'm) Tanaka.

Smith: Tanaka-san, (are you) a student?

Tanaka: No, (I'm) a teacher.

Smith: Really?

Tanaka: It's true, you know.

Smith: (You) are very young, right? How old (are you)?

Tanaka: That's a secret.
Adjectives
We've already used some adjectives as the state-oI-being but we have yet to describe a noun directly with
adjectives. In order to do this, we Iirst have to learn the two diIIerent types oI adjectives in Japanese.
There are two types oI adjectives called i-adjectivesand na-adjectives.
Examples of i-adjectives
All i-adjectives end in .
- good 1.
- cool; handsome 2.
- busy 3.
- Iun 4.
- hot 5.
- cold 6.
Examples of na-adjectives
All adjectives that do not end in are na-adjectives.
- likable 1.
- healthy; lively 2.
- quiet 3.
Examples of na-adjectives that end in
Though most adjectives that end in are i-adjectives, there are a small number oI na-adjectives that end in
. The examples below are two oI the most common na-adjectives that end in .
- clean; pretty 1.
- distasteIul 2.
Describing nouns directly
You can easily describe a noun by placing the adjective directly in Iront oI the noun. For na-adjectives, you Iirst
need to add beIore you can attach the adjective to the noun (hence the name).
Example
- person 1.
- when 2.
- game 3.
- object; thing 4.
good person
1.
lively; healthy person

2.
pretty person
3.
when busy
4.
Iun game
5.
likable thing
6.
You're so-so handsome
- Yamamoto (surname) 1.
(i-adj) - new 2.
(adv) - very 3.
(adv) - so-so 4.
- thank you (polite) 5.

Smith: Is Tanaka-sensei a new teacher?

Yamamoto: That's right.

Smith: (She's) a very pretty person, isn't she?

Yamamoto: Is that so?

Smith: Ah, Yamamoto-sensei is so-so handsome too

Yamamoto: ...Thank you.
Male/Female Speech
As opposed to polite speech, which is mostly gender-neutral, casual speech has many constructions that make it
sound masculine or Ieminine to varying degrees. OI course, you do not have to be a speciIic gender to use either
masculine or Ieminine manners oI speech but you do need to be aware oI the diIIerences and the impression it
gives to the listener. The Iirst example oI this is how and are used in casual speech.
Declarative
The declarative is attached to nouns and na-adjectives to give it a more declarative tone and make the
state-oI-being explicit. This is important in some grammatical Iorms we will cover l ater. For now, we can use it in
casual Japanese to give a more deIinitive, conIident, and somewhat masculine tone. For males, in particular, it is
important to use it beIore or to avoid sounding too Ieminine.
Note: Only attach to nouns and na-adjectives. Neverto i-adjectives.
Example
(na-adj) - skillIul, good at 2.
(i-adj) - Iun 3.
As Ior Japanese, (you're) good at it, aren't you? (Ieminine)

1.
As Ior Japanese, (you're) good at it, aren't you? (masculine)

2.
As Ior Japanese, (it's) Iun, you know. (gender-neutral as cannot be used Ior i-adjectives)
3.
The homework is easy!
(n) - homework 1.
(i-adj) - diIIicult 2.
(na-adj) - easy 3.
- umm 4.
- probably; maybe 5.
- which one; which way 6.

Alice: As Ior homework, (is it) diIIicult?

John: It's easy!

Alice: Really?

John: Umm, (it's) probably diIIicult.

Alice: Which is it?
Because John is male, he decides to use with with the na-adjective . However,
regardless oI gender, you cannot use with i-adjectives so he says . is
grammatically incorrect.
Noun properties
The particle has many diIIerent uses but one oI the most basic usages is Ior describing nouns with other
nouns similar to how we described nouns with adjectives. This is usually used to describe ownership,
membership, property or any other description that involves another noun.
It is important to remember the order the modiIication takes place. You don't want to inadvertently say "name's
me" when you meant to say "my name". II you're unsure oI the order, I recommend translating as "oI"
and reading it in reverse.
Examples
- me; myselI; I 1.
- name 2.
- this 3.
- car 4.
- Japan 5.
- pen 6.
- desk 7.
- up; above 8.
- bag 9.
- down; below 10.
- teacher 11.
Name oI me (my name) is Kim.

1.
This car is car oI Japan (Japanese car).

2.
Pen is above oI desk.

3.
Bag is below oI desk.

4.
Tanaka-sensei is teacher oI Japanese (Japanese teacher).

5.
What's your first name again?
- Iirst name (lit: bottom name) 1.
- what 2.
- why 3.
- huh, eh 4.

Lee: What is Smith-san's Iirst name?

Smith: (It's) Alice.

Lee: Alice-chan, huh?

What is Lee-san's Iirst name?

Lee: JaeYoon.

Smith: ...Lee-kun, huh?

Lee: Huh, why?
Noun replacement
The particle can also replace the noun entirely when it's understood by the context.
Examples
- red 1.
- which 2.
Like the red one.

1.
Which one is Smith-san's?

2.
Negative State-of-Being
Because the state-oI-being is implied within nouns and adjectives, expressing the negative is a bit diIIerent Irom
English. The noun or adjective are conjugated directly to say that |X is not Y|. Conjugating nouns and adjectives
into the negative is done through two simple rules.
There are only two exceptions to the rule Ior i-adjectives both involving the adjective meaning "good". The
words and (which is a combination oI another word with
) originally come Irom the adjective . Though it is usually pronounced in
modern Japanese, all conjugations still derive Irom the original reading. You will see similar examples
later as we learn diIIerent types oI conjugations.
Negative Ior nouns and adjectives
For nouns and na-adjectives: Attach to the end
Example
1.
2.
For i-adjectives: Drop the at the end and replace with
Example
1.
2.
Exceptions: conjugates Irom
1.
2.
Note: The negative Iorm is very similar grammatically to i-adjectives. Similar to i-adjectives, you must never use
the declarative with the negative.
Example
- salad 1.
- steak 2.
- not very (when used with negative) 3.
- this 4.
- book 5.
(i-adj) - interesting 6.
- this year 7.
- winter 8.
(i-adj) - cold 9.
As Ior salad, don't like very much.

1.
2.
As Ior steak salad, (it's) not salad, you know.
As Ior this book, (it's) not interesting, you know.

3.
As Ior this year's winter, (it's) not cold, is it?

4.
That's not a good thing!
(n) - class; lecture 1.
(i-adj) - interesting; Iunny 3.
- but 4.
- that 6.
(i-adj) - good 7.
(n) - matter; event 8.
(adv) - not at all (when used with negative) 9.

John: Yamamoto-sensei's class is not very interesting.

Alice: As Ior me, (it's) interesting.

John: But isn't it very diIIicult?

Alice: That's a good thing.

John: It's not good at all!
Negative Nouns/Adjectives in Polite Form
As beIore, all that's required Ior the polite Iorm is to add to the end oI the sentence.
l'm not an otaku!
(n) - hobby; interest 1.
- what read as when used with 2.
- computer (abbreviation oI or PC) 3.
- game 4.
(na-adj) - likable 5.
- sports 6.
- no (polite) 7.
- otaku; geek; enthusiast 8.

Yamamoto: What is your hobby, Lee-san?

Lee: Computers. (I) also like games.

Yamamoto: Do (you) like sports?

Lee: No, I don't like (it) that much.

Smith: Lee-san is an otaku.

Lee: I'm not an otaku
ldentifying the unknown
identifier particle
With the topic particle, you have to know what you want to talk about ahead oI time. Obviously this will
not always be the case. For example, iI you wanted to know what kind oI Iood somebody liked, it would be
impossible to ask iI each kind was his/her Iavorite using the topic particle saying "as Ior this" and "as Ior that".
That is what the particle is Ior: to identiIy or seek to identiIy an unknown.
As Ior pizza, do (you) like it?
What kind oI pizza do (like)? (Among all possibilities)

You can sometimes restructure your sentence to mean the same thing with and without the particle.
As Ior Iood that (you) like, what is it?
As Ior Iood, what is it that you like? (Among all possibilities)

However, while the topic particle can only bring up a general topic oI conversation, the identiIier particle plays a
speciIic role in that it's identiIying a particular thing among other possibilities.
As Ior Smith-san, busy.
Smith-san is the onethat is busy.

Which teacher do you like the most?
- which 1.
- number 1; the best; the most 2.
(i-adj) - cute 3.
- second year; sophomore 4.
- next year 5.
- something to look Iorward to 6.
- why 7.
- class 8.
- interesting 9.
- diIIicult 10.

Lee: As Ior John-san, which teacher do (you) like the most?

John: (I) like Tanaka-sensei.

Lee: That's so, isn't it? She is cute. But (she's) second-year teacher.

John: Looking Iorward to next year!

Alice: As Ior me, I like Yamamoto-sensei, you know?

John: Huh? Why?

Alice: Isn't (his) class interesting?

John: It's not interesting! It's diIIicult!

Alice: Is that so?
The one or thing that...
Though it doesn't work all the time, a simple trick to easily distinguish is to translate it as "the one or
thing that...". This way, it clearly illustrates the particle as identiIying a particular thing or person.
Tanaka-sensei is the one that (I) like.

1.
Isn't (his) class the thing thatis interesting?

2.
Conjunctions
There are really only two conjunctions in Japanese that can combine two sentences together into a compound
sentence: "but" and "because". However, there are several versions oI each with a sl ightly diIIerent level oI
politeness.
Combining two sentences with "but"
You may remember we already used to mean "but" or "however". While is always used at
the beginning oI a new sentence, there are two conjunctions that also mean "but" and can be used to combine
two sentences together into one compound sentence, similar to English. The two conjunctions are and
. is Iairly casual while is slightly more Iormal and polite. (Note that this is
completely diIIerent Irom the identiIier particle we learned in the last section.)
Example
- today 1.
- busy 2.
- tomorrow 3.
- Iree(as in not busy) 4.
(I'm) busy but (I'm) Iree tomorrow.
(I'm) busy but (I'm) Iree tomorrow.

Note: II the Iirst clause ends with a noun or na-adjective without any tense and you're not using , you
mustadd .
Example
(I'm) Iree today but (I'm) busy tomorrow.
1.
2.
3.
4.
II the noun or na-adjective is already conjugated such as the negative , you don't need to add
.
(I'm) not Iree today but (I'm) Iree tomorrow.
1.
2.
Combining two sentences with "so"
You can combine two sentences with or to show a reason and result but it's important to
remember that the reason comes Iirst. ThereIore, it may be beneIicial to remember it as meaning "so" rather than
"because" to match the order. is slighter more polite and Iormal compared to .
Example
- here 1.
- noisy 2.
(It's) noisy here so(I) don't like it very much.
(It's) noisy here so(I) don't like it very much.

Note: Once again, II the Iirst clause ends with a noun or na-adjective without any conjugation such as the
negative , and you're not using , you mustadd Ior . However, Ior
you must add instead.
Example
- here 1.
- quiet 2.
(It's) quiet here so (I) like it.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Once again, this only applies to nouns and na-adjectives that are not conjugated to another tense.
(It's) not quiet here so (I) don't like it very much.
1.
2.
Combining two sentences with "despite"
Similarly, you can attach two sentences with to mean "despite" or "in spite oI". Similar to ,
you must attach when the Iirst clause ends with a plain noun or na-adjective.
Example
- teacher 1.
- very 2.
(i-adj) - young 3.
- this year 4.
- (economic) recession 5.
- Christmas 6.
- customer 7.
(i-adj) - Iew, scarce 8.
(i-adj) - cute 9.
(na-adj) - serious; diligent 10.
- man 11.
- Iriend 12.
Despite the Iact that that Tanaka-san is (a) teacher, (she) is very young.
1.
This year is recession so despite it being Christmas, customers are Iew.

2.
Although Alice is cute, because (she's) serious, (she has) Iew male Iriends.
3.
Leaving parts out
You can leave out either side oI the conjunction iI it's understood by context.
Example

Smith: I don't like (it) here.

Lee: Why?

Smith: Because it's noisy.
II you leave the Iirst part out, you still need to add , , or just as iI the Iirst sentence was
there.
- library 1.
- here 2.
- likable 4.
Lee: Despite the Iact (it's) library, (It's) always noisy here, huh?
Smith: That's why I don't like (it) very much.

Other options would be the same as it would be with both sentences.
1.
2.
You can even leave out both parts oI the conjunction as seen in the next dialogue.
So what?

Lee: I'm busy lately, you know?

Smith: So?

Lee: So (it's) tough, you know! But (I'm) Iinally Iree today so (I'm) happy!

Smith: Oh, is that so?
Listing multiple nouns
complete list particle
The particle is used to group multiple nouns together in a complete list.
The poor chicken family...
- rice dish with chicken and egg (parent and child bowl) 1.
- ingredient 2.
- rice; meal 3.
- onion 4.
- soy sauce 5.
- and then 6.
- oI course 7.
- chicken 8.
- egg 9.
(i-adj) - bad Ieeling, gross, unpleasant 10.
(i-adj) - tasty 11.
(na-adj) - poor, pitiIul (as in to Ieel sorry Ior) 12.
(na-adj) - ok 14.
- truth; reality 15.
- parent 16.
- child 17.

Smith: What are the ingredients Ior Oyako-don?

Tanaka: Rice, onions, and soy sauce. And then, because it's "parent and child bowl", chicken and egg, oI course.

Smith: That's unpleasant, isn't it?

Tanaka: Is that so? But it's tasty, you know?

Smith: Don't you Ieel sorry Ior them?

Tanaka: Smith-san, (you're) interesting. (It's) not real parent and child so (it's) ok, you know.

Smith: But...
and partial list
and are also used to list multiple nouns together. The major diIIerence is that they imply that
the list is not complete and is a sample among a larger list. is merely a more casual version oI .
l hate natto
- what kind 1.
(n) - Iood 2.
- candy 3.
- cheese cake 4.
- strawberry 5.
- short cake 6.
(i-adj) - sweet 7.
(n) - thing 8.
(n) - natto (Iermented soybeans) 9.
(na-adj) - dislike; hate 10.

Yamamoto: As Ior Smith-san, what kind oI Iood do (you) like?

Smith: Let's see. (I) like things likeJapanese candy, cheese cake, and strawberry short cake.

Yamamoto: (You) like sweet things, don't you?

Smith: (I) also like things that are not sweet, you know.

Yamamoto: How about natto?

Smith: As Ior natto, I hate it.
possible options
can be used with multiple nouns to list several possible options, essentially meani ng "or".
You're just like whatever, huh?
- exam 1.
- when 2.
- today 3.
- tomorrow 4.
- deIinitely, Ior sure 5.
- then (casual) 6.
- haphazard, whatever works 7.
- next week 8.
- as I thought 9.

Alice: Exam is when?

John: Today or tomorrow.

Alice: It's not today Ior sure.

John: Then, (it's) tomorrow.

Alice: (You're) haphazard, huh?

Lee: Exam is next week, you know.

Alice: As I thought.
Explanations and expectations
In English, changing the order oI words in the sentence can oIten change the tone as well. For example, asking
"Is he a student?" sounds very diIIerent Irom "He's a student?" While the Iormer is a very neutral question simply
seeking a yes or no answer, the latter expresses surprise that the person is in Iact a student and is seeking
conIirmation oI that Iact.
In Japanese, we saw that sentence order is very Ilexible due to how particles clearly deIine the grammatical role
oI each word. So in order to express this kind oI biased question or answer, we add to the end oI the
sentence to show that we are seeking or providing an explanation.
For nouns and na-adjectives, you also need to add beIore .
Example
- he 1.
- student 2.
Is he (a) student?
1.
He's a student? (Seeking explanation why he's a student)

2.
In the second sentence, because the person is implicitly seeking an explanation Ior why he's a student, it gives
the impression that the speaker is surprised or considers the Iact that he may be a student to be unexpected.
Health is important too
- by the way 1.
- why 2.
- busy 3.
- me, myselI (polite, masculine) 4.
- swim club 5.
- eh, huh 6.
- so 7.
- but 8.
- hobby; interests 9.
- computer; PC 10.
- game 11.
- health 12.
(na-adj) - important 13.
- I see 14.

Smith: By the way, Lee-kun, why are you busy?

Lee: Because (I'm in) swim club.

Smith: Eh? Is that so?

Lee: That's so but?

Smith: But isn't (your) hobby computers and games?

Lee: That's so but health is also important so.

Smith: I see.
Explanation for and
When the sentence has additional things Iollowing the such as or , the is
replaced with to make pronunciation easier. While can still be used, it is considered to be
old-Iashioned.
What's the problem?
- um, er, excuse me 1.
(i-adj) - good; Iine 2.
- word; language 3.

Smith: Yamamoto-sensei, Lee-san is not an otaku because (he's in) swim club.

Yamamoto: Um, Smith-san, Otaku is not a very good word, you know.

Smith: Is that so? But Lee-san is not an otaku so isn't it Iine?

Yamamoto: Smith-san...

Smith: Yes?
Yamamoto: No, nevermind (lit: (it's) Iine).

The phrase shows a very important way setting expectations can enhance your
abilities to express certain things. By setting the expectation that it should be good and asking the opposite allows
you to ask questions like, "isn't it?". You can compare the diIIerence in meaning bylooking at the diIIerent
variations below. This is only to give you the general idea as you'll naturally get the hang oI it through the regular
course oI exposure to the language.
- Is it good? (neutral yes/no question) 1.
- Is it not good? (neutral yes/no question) 2.
- It's good? (seeking explanation as to why it's good) 3.
- It's not good? (seeking explanation as to why it's not good) 4.
- It's good, isn't it? 5.
- It's not good, isn't it? 6.
In this chapter, we learned how to use nouns and adjectives to describe what something is or isn't. Here is a
simple list oI examples using the various conjugations we learned in this chapter.
Nouns and Adjectives Conjugation Examples
Positive Negative Positive Polite Negative Polite
Noun
Na-adjective
l-adjective
Exception * *
* exceptions
Questions using state-of-being
Now that we're Iamiliar with the state-oI-being, we can already ask and answer many diIIerent types oI questions
that involve what something or someone is. This includes asking simple yes/no questi ons or by using a question
word.
Various ways to say yes or no
- yes (polite) 1.
- yes (polite) 2.
- no (polite) 3.
- yes (casual) 4.
- no (casual 5.
Various question words
- what 1.
- who 2.
- when 3.
- how 4.
- what kind oI 5.
- why 6.
- why (casual) 7.
The word Ior "what" or is a bit tricky because it has two readings. When used by itselI, it is always
pronounced . However, as we've already seen, when used with it is read as . There
are other cases when it is read as as we'll see later.
As you begin to practice speaking Japanese, you can apply what we've learned in this chapter to ask various
ice-breaker questions.
Sample ice-breaker questions
- hobby; interests 1.
- number 1; the best; the most 2.
- Japan 4.
- Iood 5.
- English 6.
- class 8.
(i-adj) - Iun 9.
music 10.
What is your hobby?

1.
What is your Iavorite Iood?

2.
3.
Do you like Japanese Iood?
Is English diIIicult?
4.
Is class Iun?
5.
What kind oI music do you like?

6.
Try to come up with your own questions Ior your teacher, classmates, or conversation partner.
Writing Practice
For writing practice, try writing a brieI description about yourselI. As always, make sure to correct your work
early to avoid developing any bad habits. You can either ask a Japanese speaker or use http://lang-8.com/.
Here's a short list oI words that might be useIul.
- name 1.
- elementary school 2.
- middle school 3.
- high school 4.
- college 5.
- Iirst year; Ireshman 6.
- second year; sophomore 7.
- third year; junior 8.
- Iourth year; senior 9.
- major 10.
- interests; hobbies 11.
- reading 12.
- sports 13.
- desirable 15.
- very 16.
- a little 17.
(na-adj) - easy 20.
- Iood 21.
For example, here's a short selI description by Alice Smith.
- economy 1.
- economics 2.
- soccer 3.
- by the way 4.
- tempura 5.
- pizza 6.
Verbs
Similar to nouns and adjectives, the verb always comes at the end oI the sentence. In Iact, iI you consider the
implied state-oI-being Ior nouns and adjectives as a verb, it could be said that all complete sentences always end
with a verb.
At the end oI the last chapter, we learned how to set expectations by seeking or providing explanations with
. The same thing applies Ior verbs.
Example
- sushi is an optional honoriIic preIix 1.
- to eat 2.
Do you eat sushi?

1.
You eat sushi?

(seeking explanation why he/she eats sushi as opposed to a neutral question "Do you eat sushi?")
2.
l love sushi!
(na-adj) - lovable; very likable 1.
- raw 2.
- Iish 3.
(i-adj) - amazing 4.

John: As Ior sushi, (you) eat (it)?

Smith: Yes, I love (it)!

John: But (it's) raw Iish, you know.

Smith: So?

John: That's amazing.
Particles used with verbs
BeIore we can do much with verbs, we Iirst need to learn some particles that are used to describe how various
parts oI a sentence interacts with the verb.
Object Particle
The particle is used to designate the direct object oI a verb.
Note: While is technically a w-consonant sound, it is pronounced the same as .
Example
- movie 1.
- to see; to watch 2.
- rice; meal 3.
- to eat 4.
- book 5.
- to read 6.
- hand 7.
- paper 8.
- letter 9.
- to write 10.
Watch movie.
1.
Eat rice/meal.
2.
Read book.
3.
Write letter.
4.
And/With Particle
We learned that we can list multiple nouns in the last chapter with the particle, e.g., salt and pepper. We
can also use the same particle to describe an action that was done with someone or something.
Example
- Iriend 1.
- to play 2.
- to talk 3.
- relative 4.
- to meet 5.
Play with Iriend.

1.
Talk with Lee-san.

2.
Meet with relative.

3.
Target Particle
The target particle is used to designate the target oI an action whether it's a time or location. It serves the purpose
oI many English prepositions such as "at", "in", "to", and "on" as long as it indicates a target oI an action.
Example
- school 1.
- to go 2.
- tomorrow 3.
- to come 4.
- bus 5.
- to ride 6.
- to ask; to listen 7.
- in Iront 8.
- to stand 9.
- Iriend 10.
- to meet 11.
Go to school.
1.
As Ior relative(s), come tomorrow

2.
Ride on bus.
3.
Ask teacher.
4.
Stand in Iront oI people.

5.
Meet Iriend.
6.
Context Particle
The context particle is used to describe the context or the means in which a verb ta kes place. For example, iI
you're eating at a restaurant, since the restaurant is not a direct target Ior eatin g, you wouldn't use the
particle. Instead, you would use the particle to describe the restaurant as the context in which eating is
taking place.
Example
- restaurant 1.
- to speak 3.
- chopsticks 4.
- movie theatre 5.
- work 6.
(i-adj) - busy 7.
Eat at restaurant.
1.
Speak in Japanese. (Speak by means oI Japanese.)

2.
Eat with chopsticks. (Eat by means oI chopsticks.)

3.
Watch movie at movie theatre.

4.
Busy with work. (Busy by means oI work.)

5.
Directional Particle
The particle is similar in some ways to the particle. However, while the particle indicates
a target Ior just about any verb, is more speciIically used to indicate a direction oI motion verbs such as
"to go" or "to send".
Because the particle does everything does and more, this particle is not used as oIten as the other
particles. However, it is still beneIicial to be at least Iamiliar with it.
Note: While is normally pronounced as "he", this particle is pronounced as
Example
- letter 1.
- to send 2.
Go to school.
1.
Send letter to Japan.

2.
Existence Verbs
With the state-oI-being that we learned in the last chapter, we could only describe what someone or something is.
In this section, we'll learn to express whether someone or something exists and where.
There are two verbs that show existence Ior animate and inanimate objects.
(u-verb) - to exist (inanimate)
(ru-verb) - to exist (animate)
Without getting caught up with the details, is generally used Ior things that can move oI their own
volition such as humans or animals while is Ior inanimate objects and abstract concepts such as time.
Example
- where 1.
- time 2.
Where is Alice-chan? (lit: Alice-chan exists at where?)

1.
Do (you) have time? (lit: Is there time?)

2.
Location
With some additional vocabulary, you can use these two verbs to describe the location oI anything or anyone.
- here 1.
- there 2.
- over there (Iarther away) 3.
- above 4.
- below 5.
- right 6.
- leIt 7.
- Iront; beIore 8.
- behind 9.
- next to 10.
Example
- key 1.
- table 2.
- bank 3.
- post oIIice 4.
Alice is behind (the) school. (lit: As Ior Alice, exists behind oI school.)
1.
Key is above (the) table. (lit: As Ior key, exists above oI table.)
2.
Bank is next to post oIIice. (lit: As Ior bank, exist next oI post oIIice.)
3.
Any cute girls there?
- tomorrow 1.
- club 2.
- to go 3.
- to do 4.
- conversation 5.
- practice 6.
- me; myselI (masculine and very casual) 7.
- homework 8.
- Japanese person 9.
- cute 10.
- woman 11.
- child 12.
- girl 13.
- um; excuse me 14.
- Ior the time being; just in case 15.
- as expected (casual) 16.
- to get irritated 17.

Alice: There's Japanese club tomorrow, want to go? (lit: Tomorrow, Japanese club exi sts but go?)

John: What do (you) do at Japanese club?

Alice: (You) do Japanese conversation practice.

John: I have a lot oI homework so (I'm) good. (lit: As Ior me, a lot oI homework exi sts so good.)

Alice: Japanese people are also there, you know.

John: Is there cute girl(s)?

Alice: Um, just in case, I'm going too but?

John: Is that so? As I thought, I'm good.

Alice: So irritating.
Negative Form
Verb Types
In this section, we'll learn how to conjugate verbs to the negative Iorm. However, beIore we can learn any verb
conjugations, we Iirst need to learn how verbs are categorized. With the exception oI only two exception verbs,
all verbs Iall into the category oI ru-verb or u-verb.
All ru-verbs end in while u-verbs can end in a number oI u-vowel sounds including . ThereIore, iI
a verb does not end in , it will always be an u-verb. For verbs ending in , iI the vowel sound
preceding the is an /a/, /u/ or /o/ vowel sound, it will always be an u-verb. Otherwise, iI the preceding
sound is an /i/ or /e/ vowel sound, it will be a ru-verb in most cases .
Examples
- is an e-vowel sound so it is a ru-verb 1.
- is an a-vowel sound so it is an u-verb 2.
II you're unsure which category a verb Ialls in, you can veriIy which kind it is with most dictionaries. There are
only two exception verbs that are neither ru-verbs nor u-verbs as shown in the table below.
Examples oI diIIerent verb types
ru-verb u-verb exception
- to see - to speak - to do
- to eat - to ask; to listen - to come
- to sleep - to swim
- to wake; to occur - to play
- to think - to wait
- to teach; to inIorm - to drink
- to come out - to buy
- to change - to go home
- to exist (animate) - to exist (inanimate)
- to wear - to die
Negative Form
We can now learn the rules Ior conjugating the verb into the negative Iorm based on the diIIerent verb types. Be
extra careIul oI which is one extra exception verb Ior this conjugation only.
Negative Iorm Ior verbs
For ru-verbs: Drop the and attach
Example:
1.
For u-verbs that end in : Replace with and attach 2.
Example:
For all other u-verbs: Replace the u-vowel sound with the a-vowel equivalent and attach
Example:
3.
Exceptions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Negative Iorm conjugation examples

You don't have a TV?
- hey 1.
- TV 2.
- program (e.g. TV) 3.
- how 4.
(u-verb) - think 5.
- not at all (when used with negative) 6.
(u-verb) - to understand; to know 8.
(ru-verb) - to see 9.
- why 10.
- one's own home, Iamily, or household 11.
- lie; no way (casual) 12.
- truth; reality 13.
John: Hey, as Ior recent TV shows, how (do you) think? It's not interesting at all, huh?

Alice: (I) don't know. As Ior me, I don't watch TV so.

John: Huh? Why don't (you) watch it?

Alice: As Ior our house, there's no TV.
John: No way!

Alice: (It's) true.
John: ... No way!

Alice: (It's) true, you know.
Polite Verbs
Verb Stem
BeIore we can learn the conjugation rules Ior the polite verb Iorm, we must Iirst learn how to create the verb
stem. The verb stem is used in many diIIerent types oI verb conjugations including the polite Iorm. Below are the
rules Ior changing the verb to its stem.
Verb stem conjugation rules
For ru-verbs: Drop the
Example:
For u-verbs: Replace the u-vowel sound with the i-vowel equivalent
Example:
Exceptions:
1.
2.
Verb stem examples

Polite Verb Form
Now that we know the rules to create the verb stem, it is very easy to conjugate the verb to the polite Iorm Ior
both the positive and negative.
Polite and polite negative verb conjugation rules
Polite Positive: Attach to the verb stem
Example:
1.
Polite Negative:Attach to the verb stem
Example:
2.
Verb as a target
The verb stem can also be used to make it a target Ior another verb, typical a motion verb such as "go" or
"come". This is done by attaching the target particle to the verb stem.
Examples
- lunch 1.
- to eat 2.
- to go 3.
- me, myselI 4.
- to meet 5.
- to come 6.
- Iriend 7.
- movie 8.
- see, watch 9.
Go to eat lunch.
1.
Coming to meet me.

2.
Go to watch movie with Iriend(s).

3.
My family is in Korea
- everybody (polite) 1.
- this year 2.
- spring 3.
- vacation 4.
- what 5.
- to do 6.
- me, myselI 7.
- here 8.
- part-time job 9.
- Iamily 10.
(u-verb) - to meet 11.
(u-verb) - to go 12.
- South Korea 13.
(ru-verb) - to exist (animate) 14.
- airplane 15.
- charge, cost, Iare 16.
- very 17.
(i-adj) - tall; expensive 18.
(u-verb) - to go home 19.
- so 20.
(na-adj) - tough, rough 21.

Yamamoto: Everybody, what will (you) do at this year's spring vacation?

Lee: As Ior me, (I) will do part-time job here.

Yamamoto: (You) will not go to meet your Iamily?
Lee: My Iamily is in Korea so the plane ticket is very expensive. ThereIore, (I) will not go back home to Korea
this year.

Yamamoto: Is that so? (It's) very tough, isn't it?
Desire and Volition
To want to do
In order to describe what someone or something wants to do, we must conjugate the verb into the
Iorm. This is done by simply attaching to the verb stem. One important thing to note is that this
conjugation changes the verb into essentially an i-adjective. This is because it's no longer an actual action but a
description oI what one wants to do. ThereIore, you can do all the same conjugations on the Iorm as
any other i-adjectives.
Example
- crab 1.
(i-adj) - scary 2.
(I) want to eat crab.

1.
(I) want to go to Japan.

2.
(I) don't want to watch (a) scary movie.

3.
Volitional Form
We'll learn more about diIIerent uses oI the volitional Iorm later on but Ior now, we can simply consider the
volitional Iorm to mean "let's" or "shall we" e.g., "Let's go watch a movie." The rules Ior changing a verb into the
volitional Iorm is below.
Volitional Iorm conjugation rules
For ru-verbs: Drop the and add
Example:
1.
For u-verbs: Replace the u-vowel sound with the o-vowel equivalent and
Example:
2.
Exceptions:
becomes
becomes
3.
l'm bored
(sentence-ending particle) - a more casual and masculine version oI 1.
- library 2.
- study 3.
- to do 4.
- boring, dull 5.
- then (casual) 6.
(na-adj) - ok 7.
- deIinitely, Ior sure 8.

John: I have nothing to do lately. (lit: Lately, I'm Iree.)
Alice: Shall we study Japanese at the library?

John: That's boring.

Alice: Then, what do you want to do?
John: Shall (I) go to watch a movie maybe?

Alice: Are (your) studies ok?

John: Yeah, (it's) ok.

Alice: (It's) deIinitely not ok, you know.
Polite Volitional Form
The conjugation rules Ior polite version oI the volition Iorm is simple and only requires adding to
the verb stem.
Polite volitional Iorm conjugation rules
For all verbs: Attach to the verb stem
Examples
(let's eat)
(let's go)
(let's do)
lt's a good idea!
- lesson 1.
(ru-verb) - to begin 2.
- weather 3.
- class 4.
- outside 5.
- idea 6.
- well then 7.
(u-verb) - to go 8.
Yamamoto: Let's begin today's lesson.

Smith: Teacher, because the weather is good today, let's do the class outside!
Yamamoto: That's a good thought. Shall (we) go outside?
Everybody: Yes!
Telling Time
Time
In order to eIIectively describe when we want to do certain things and make plans, we'll need to know how to
describe time. Similar to the age counter we learned in the very Iirst chapter, we simply need to use the counters
Ior hours and minutes.
- hour counter
- minute counter
Once again, there are a number oI reading variations to pay careIul attention to. These readings are listed below.
Hour reading variations
Hour 4 o'clock 7 o'clock 9 o'clock
Kanji
Reading
Minute reading variations
Minutes How many minutes 1 min 3 min 4 min 6 min 8 min 10 min
Kanji
Reading
Examples
Though there are words Ior AM and PM, military time is used more oIten in Japan.
- what hour; what time 1.
- AM 2.
- PM 3.
- halI 4.
- 1:01 1.
- 4:44 PM 2.
- 10:30 AM 3.
- 18:25 (6:25 PM) 4.
Example
- what hour; what time 1.
What time is it now?

(It's) 2:30.
Days of the week
Below is a vocabulary list pertaining to days oI the week. Combined with time, this should be adequate Ior
making plans in the near Iuture. We will learn how to express complete calendar dates in a later chapter.
- What day oI week 1.
- Monday 2.
- Tuesday 3.
- Wednesday 4.
- Thursday 5.
- Friday 6.
- Saturday 7.
- Sunday 8.
- last week 9.
- this week 10.
- next week 11.
- every week 12.
- weekday 13.
- weekend 14.
ls it really late?
- everybody 1.
- restaurant 2.
- what time 3.
- evening 4.
(i-adj) - late 6.
- everyday 7.
- to sleep 8.
(u-verb) - to be diIIerent 9.
- ok 10.

Lee: Everybody is going to eat at (a) Japanese restaurant next Friday, (do you) Alice-chan want to also go?

Alice: What time are (you) going?

Lee: 8:30 night.

Alice: (It's) a little late, isn't it?

Lee: That's because Alice-chan (you) sleep at 10:00 every day.

Alice: That's not so!

Lee: Then it's Iine as 8:30 right?

Alice: Fine! 8:30.
From and until
Two particles that oIten go together especially with time expressions are "Irom" and "until" .
Example
(particle) - Irom 1.
(particle) - until 2.
- aerobics 3.
- class 4.
- class 5.
(u-verb) - to begin 6.
- this 7.
- company 8.
(u-verb) - to work 9.
- parents 10.
- contact 11.
Aerobic class is every Tuesday and Friday Irom 6:00 until 7:00pm.
1.
From what time is class start?

2.
Until when do (you) want to work at this company?

3.
(I) hear Irom (my) parents on every weekend. (lit: Contact comes Irom parents every weekend.)
4.
Question words and particles
Particles can be used with some question words to Iorm other useIul vocabulary. Let's Iirst learn or review all the
various questions words.
- who 1.
- what 2.
- where 3.
- how 4.
- why 5.
- which way 6.
- which 7.
- why (casual) 8.
- why (Iormal) 9.
- when 10.
- how many 11.
- how much 12.
with question words
The Iollowing question words can be used with to include and/or exclude everything.
- everybody or nobody when used with negative 1.
- nothing when used with negative 2.
- everywhere or nowhere when used with negative 3.
- no matter what 4.
- both ways 5.
- always 6.
Things aren't as consistent as one would hope however. For example, is usually not used to mean
"everything". And always means "always" Ior both positive and negative Iorms. Other words can be
used instead to express similar concepts.
- everybody 1.
- everybody (polite) 2.
- everything 3.
- absolutely, unconditionally or never when used with negative 5.
with question words
The combination oI two particles can be used with question words to indicate "any".
- anybody 1.
- anything 2.
- anywhere 3.
- anyhow 4.
- any way 5.
- any time 6.
- any number oI things 7.
- any amount 8.
with question words
The question marker can also be used with some question words to indicate "some".
- somebody 1.
- something 2.
- somewhere 3.
- somehow 4.
- one way (oI the two) 5.
- Ior some reason 6.
- Ior some reason (casual) 7.
- Ior some reason (Iormal) 8.
- sometime 9.
- some number oI things 10.
- some amount 11.
Never mind, you guys are too weird
- hey (casual) 1.
- today 2.
- lunch 3.
- somewhere 4.
- me, myselI (polite, masculine) 5.
- anything 6.
- then (casual) 7.
(i-adj) - tasty 8.
- physical object 9.
- obvious 10.
- who 11.
- everybody (casual) 12.
- as usual, without change 13.
(na-adj) - strange 14.
- caIeteria 15.

Alice: Hey, as Ior today's lunch, let's go somewhere to eat.

John: Right. What shall we eat?

Lee: I'm Iine with anything.

Alice: Then, don't (you) want to eat something tasty?

John: That's obvious. Who wants to eat a thing not tasty?

Lee: I'm Iine with anything.

John: Then, let's challenge (ourselves) today with something not tasty!

Alice: Everybody is strange as usual, huh? The caIeteria is Iine Ior today as well.
Adverbs
We've already been using adverbs extensively without really paying much attention to them because they are
easy to use. They don't require any particles and they can appear almost anywhere in the sentence. Below is a list
oI common and useIul adverbs, some oI which we've already seen.
Useful adverbs
- always 1.
- oIten 2.
- usually 3.
- sometimes 4.
- rarely 5.
- probably, maybe 7.
- a lot (amount) 8.
- a little (amount) 9.
Creating adverbs from adjectives
There are many words that are not adverbs by themselves but are made into adverbs Ir om other adjectives. This
is similar to how "ly" is added to many words in English to make them into adverbs such as "quickly" or
"slowly".
The rules Ior changing an adjective into an adverb is given below. As usual, is conjugated Irom the
original pronunciation. This is where the adverb we just learned Ior "oIten" comes Irom.
Rules Ior changing adjectives into adverbs
For na-adjectives:Attach to the end
Examples
1.
2.
3.
For i-adjectives: Replace the with
Examples
1.
2.
Exceptions:
becomes 1.
becomes 2.
Examples
- room 1.
(na-adj) - pretty; clean 2.
- Iemale 3.
- voice actor/actress 4.
(adv) - on purpose 5.
- cute 6.
(u-verb) - to speak 7.
- tomorrow 8.
- important 9.
- exam 10.
- tonight 11.
(i-adj) - early 12.
(ru-verb) - to sleep 13.
Make room clean (lit: Do room cleanly).

1.
Japanese Iemale voice actresses oIten speak cutely on purpose.

2.
Tomorrow, because there's an important test, going to sleep early tonight

3.
(Are you) really going to Japan next year?

4.
Verb clauses
Now that we are Iamiliar with both state-oI-being and verbs, we can begin to look at how to use verb clauses to
construct more complicated sentences. As we have learned, a complete sentence must e nd either in a real verb or
state-oI-being. This sentence can also be used as a clause as a part oI a larger sentence.
Remember also that the polite Iorm only goes at the end oI a complete sentence so a verb clause used within a
sentence must be in the plan Iorm.
Verb clauses as adjectives
A verb clauses can be used to describe a noun just like an adjective. Except Ior nouns and na-adjectives that is
not conjugated to another tense, nothing is required except to put the clause direct ly in Iront oI the noun.
The highlighted areas show the clause that is a smaller sentence used in the larger sentence.
Examples
- rice; meal 1.
- when 2.
- television 3.
- book 4.
(u-verb) - read 5.
- head; mind 6.
- height 7.
(na-adj) - lovely 8.
(i-adj) - tall 9.
- personality 10.
- gentle 11.
When eating a meal, don't watch TV.

1.
People that does not read books are not smart.

2.
Tall people are lovely, huh?

3.
Don't like people whose personality is not gentle.

4.
For na-adjectives, as always we need to use to attach it to a noun. As Ior nouns, there is no need to use a
clause to modiIy a noun with another noun as the particle allows us to chain any number oI nouns.
- shape, Iorm 1.
(na-adj) - pretty; clean 2.
- Iruit 3.
- luck 4.
Fruit that has very pretty Iorm is tasty.

1.
As Ior second year Japanese students, luck is good.

2.
l'm going alone
- this year 1.
- spring vacation 2.
- plan(s) 3.
- sightseeing 4.
- Mexico 5.
- one person; alone 6.
- intention 7.
- together 8.
- explanation, reasoning 9.

Yamamoto: Tanaka-san, do (you) have some (kind oI) plan this spring vacation?
Tanaka: Yes, (I) plan to go sightseeing to Mexico.

Yamamoto: That's nice. I want to go to Mexico too.

Tanaka: I intend to by myselI...
Yamamoto: No, it's not the case that I want to go together with you in particular!
Verb clauses as nouns
Verbs clauses are diIIerent Irom nouns and are limited in many ways because you cannot attach any particles to
them. However, we just learned that verb clauses can act as an adjectives. All we need to treat verb clauses as a
noun is by attaching a generic noun to the clause:
can also be used as a noun replacement. The diIIerence is is a more general statement while
is speciIic to the context oI the sentence.
Example
- event, matter, generic happening 1.
- cooking 2.
- chopsticks 3.
- rice; meal 4.
(i-adj) - diIIicult, hard 5.
- morning 6.
- early 7.
- to occur; to awake 8.
(na-adj) - poor/weak at 9.
(I) like cooking.

1.
It is diIIicult to eat rice by way oI chopsticks.

2.
Not good at waking up early in the morning.

3.
What do you like to do when you're free?
- this week 1.
- particular 2.
- bookstore 3.
(i-adj) - bothersome 4.
- me, myselI (masculine, casual 5.
(na-adj) - Iree (as in not busy) 6.
- as I thought, as expected 7.

Smith: Do you have some kind oI plan this weekend?

John: Not particularly but?
:
Smith: How about going to Japanese bookstore with everybody?

John: It's too bothersome so I'm Iine.

Smith: What do you like to do when you're Iree?

John: I like not doing anything.

Smith: As I thought.
In this chapter, we learned how to use describe common activities using verbs. We also learned how to make or
suggest plans by using the and volitional Iorm. Finally, we learned the concept oI verb clauses and
how to use them to create more complicated sentences.
Here is a short list oI examples using the various conjugations we learned in this chapter.
Verb Conjugation Examples
Plain Negative Polite Negative Polite
Ru-verb
U-verb
Verbs ending in *
Exception *
Exception * * *
Exception * * *
* exceptions
Future plans and routine activities
In this chapter, we learned how to use verbs to talk about things we do or do not do. The verbs, by themselves,
do not have a speciIic tense so they can be used to describe activities in the Iutur e or an unspeciIied time.
With the grammar we learned in this chapter, we now know how to make plans with other people and talk about
what the kinds oI things we do on a regular basis. Here is a long list oI vocabularydescribing various times in
addition to the ones we already learned Ior days oI the week. Though the vocabulary list is rather long, you'll
notice that it's mostly diIIerent combinations oI the same Kanji such as Ior day.
- yesterday 1.
- today 2.
- tomorrow 3.
- every day 4.
- last month 5.
- this month 6.
- next month 7.
- every month 8.
- last year 9.
- this year 10.
- next year 11.
- every year 12.
- morning 13.
- this morning 14.
- every morning 15.
- aIternoon 16.
- evening 17.
- tonight 18.
- tonight 19.
- every night 20.
- rice; meal 21.
- breakIast 22.
- lunch 23.
- dinner 24.
- spring 25.
- summer 26.
- autumn 27.
- winter 28.
- rest, vacation 29.
What shall (we) do today?

1.
What kind oI Iood do (you) want to eat?

2.
What shall we eat Ior lunch?

3.
What do (you) usually due on weekends?

4.
Do (you) have some kind oI plan this winter vacation?

5.
How (about) going to watch movie next weekend?

6.
What do (you) like to do when (you're) Iree?

7.
Writing Practice
II you have Iriends who speak Japanese, great! Next time you're making plans either in an email or Iace-to-Iace,
surprise your Iriend by using Japanese.
Otherwise, Ior your diary on paper or on Lang-8, you can talk about the kinds oI things you do and activities you
enjoy. For example, here is a short selI-description oI John Brown talking about thethings he likes do or (or not).
l like sleeping the most
- hobby 1.
- particularly 2.
- #1; the best; -est 4.
- homework 5.
- studies 6.
- Kanji 8.
- pronunciation 9.
- Iuture 10.
- as much as possible 11.
(na-adj) - with ease; comIortable 12.
- work; job 13.
- a lot 14.
- to work 15.
- what one should do (lit: how do) 16.
- when 17.
Nice to meet you. My name is John Brown. As Ior (my) hobbies, there aren't any particularly but (I) like sleeping
the best. (I) don't like doing things like homework and studying very much. But (I) like speaking in Japanese, you
know. Because things like Kanji and pronunciation are interesting. (I) want to go toJapan sometime. As Ior in the
Iuture, (I) want to do a relaxing job as much as possible but everybody in Japanese works a lot so what should (I)
do? As expected, (I) want to go when (I'm) a student.
Verb tenses and clauses
At the end oI the last chapter, we learned about the concept oI the verb clause. In this chapter, we will learn
more ways to utilize the verb clause along with the progressive and past tense.
Progressive Tense
The progressive tense in most cases indicate an action that is ongoing. Some simple examples oI the progressive
tense is "I am watching a movie" or "I am eating". The same tense is also used to described an ongoing state
resulting Irom the action such as, "I am married". In order to learn the conjugation rule Ior this construction, we
must Iirst learn the te-Iorm, a very useIul verb Iorm that we will use in many diIIerent types oI grammar.
The te-form
The conjugation rule Ior ru-verbs and the exception verbs are Iairly easy as you simply need to append
to the stem.
To change ru-verbs into the te-Iorm
Drop the part oI the ru-verb (same as the stem) and add
Examples
1.
2.
Conjugating a u-verb to the te-Iorm is a bit more complex because we must break up u-verbs into Iour additional
categories. These Iour categories depend on the last character oI the verb. The list below has an example oI a
common verb with each diIIerent ending.
(u-verb) - to write 2.
(u-verb) - to swim 3.
(u-verb) - to drink 4.
(u-verb) - to play 5.
(u-verb) - to die 6.
(u-verb) - to cut 7.
(u-verb) - to buy 8.
(u-verb) - to hold 9.
The table below illustrated the Iour diIIerent categories and the conjugation rules Ior each using the list above.
There is also one additional exception Ior this conjugation:
Te-Iorm conjugations Ior u-verbs
Ending Non-Past changes to... Te-form

Exception Verbs
Non-Past Te-form

*
* exceptions particular to this conjugation
Progressive Tense
In order to change a verb to the progressive tense, we simply need to attach a verb we already learned to the
te-Iorm. This is the ru-verb used to express existence oI an animate object. In this case, it is used
simply as a grammatical construct to express the progressive tense and has little to do with the original verb.
Using Ior progressive tense
To describe a continuing action, Iirst conjugate the verb to the te-Iorm and then attach the ru-verb
.
Examples
1.
2.
The beauty and simplicity oI this construction is because it ends in the ru-verb , any additional
conjugations are the same as any other ru-verb, including the polite Iorm. This alsoapplies to the past tense,
which we will learn later.
Progressive Conjugation Examples
Positive Negative Positive Polite Negative Polite
Ru-verb
U-verb
Exception *
Exception *
Exception *
* exceptions
Example
- that 1.
- already 2.
(u-verb) - to acquire knowledge 3.
- pen 4.
(u-verb) - to hold 5.
- marriage 6.
- dog 7.
- cat 8.
(u-verb) - to keep; to raise (pets in particular) 9.
(u-verb) - to get Iat 10.
(ru-verb) - to get skinny 11.
(I) know that already. (lit: In state oI having acquired that knowledge already.)
1.
Do (you) have (a) pen? (lit: In state oI holding (owning) pen?)

2.
Are (you) married? (lit: In state oI being married?)

3.
Not doing anything.

4.
Raising a dog.
5.
Not raising a cat.

6.
(The) cat is Iat. (lit: Cat is in state oI having gotten Iat.)

7.
(The) dog is skinny. (lit: Dog is in state oI having gotten skinny.)

8.
Where do you live?
(u-verb) - to reside at 1.
- dormitory 2.
(ru-verb) - to happen to see 3.
- Ior a long time or distance 4.
- east 5.
- direction 6.
- place 7.
- that much 8.
(i-adj) - Iar 9.
- Iirst year; Ireshman 10.
(u-verb) - to choose 11.
- #1; the best; -est 12.
(i-adj) - late 13.

Alice: Lee-kun, where are you residing at now?

Lee: (I'm) living in the dorm.

Alice: Is that so? (I) don't see (you) every much, dorm oI where?
Lee: The place that's at the Iar east direction.
Alice: Why are you living in such a Iar place?
Lee: (I'm) a Ireshman so (we're) the latest to select a place to live.

Shortened progressive form
The Irom can be dropped in more casual situations.
Example
What are (you) doing?

1.
What are (you) reading?

2.
Don't own a dog.

3.
Do (you) have (a) pen?

4.
Past Verb Tense
Plain past tense verbs
The conjugation rules Ior the plain past tense are quite simple now that we've already learn the rules Ior the
te-Iorm. This is because the plain past tense conjugation rules are almost identical to the rules Ior the te-Iorm.
The only diIIerence is to use and in the place oI and respectively.
The past-negative conjugation rule should also be Iamiliar to you as it's identical to the past-tense conjugation
rules Ior both i-adjectives and negative state-oI-being.
Remember that the progressive tense always end in the ru-verb: . This means you can use the same
rules as any other ru-verbs to easily change the progressive tense to the past progressive or negative past
progressive.
Plain past verb tense conjugation rules
Past tense:Conjugate to the te-Iorm and replace with and with
Examples

eat ate
1.

drink drank
2.

eating was eating
3.
Negative past tense: Conjugate to the negative and replace the last with
Examples

eat not eat did not eat
1.

drink not drink did not drink
2.

eating not eating was not eating
3.
When you don't understand, you should say so
(u-verb) - to know 1.
(i-adj) - odd, strange, Iunny 2.
- together 3.
- to study 4.
- expected to be 5.
(sentence-ending particle, casual) - I wonder 6.
(casual) - sorry 7.
- errand 8.
(ru-verb) - to be late 9.
- (one's own) mother 10.
- sudden 11.
- phone 12.
- to say 13.
(ru-verb) - to teach; to inIorm 14.
(u-verb) - to understand 15.
- properly 16.
(ru-verb) - to convey 17.
- should 18.
- sigh 19.

Alice: Where is Lee-kun?

John: Don't know.
Alice: That's odd. (We) are supposed to study here together but (I) wonder where (he) went?

Lee: Alice-chan, sorry. (I) was little late due to an errand.
Alice: What were you doing?

Lee: A phone call came suddenly Irom (my) mother. I told John, didn't (he) tell you?

John: Sorry, I didn't understand the thing (you) were saying so (I) didn't say anything to Alice-chan.

Alice: (You) should properly convey when you didn't understand something, you know.

John: (I) understood.

Lee: Did (you) really understand?

John: Not really.

Alice: Sigh...
Polite past verbs
The rules Ior the polite past tense is similar to the other polite tenses and are all based on the verb stem.
Polite past verb tense conjugation rules
Past tense:Attach to the verb stem
Examples
1.
2.
Negative past tense: Attach to the verb stem
Examples
1.
2.
Summary oI tenses
Positive Negative
Non-Past - go - don't go
Past - went - didn't go
Spring vacation is already over
- Yamamoto (surname) 1.
- teacher 2.
- Good day (pronounced ) 3.
- already 4.
- completely, thoroughly 5.
- Spring 6.
- to become 7.
- so 8.
- spring vacation 9.
- real 10.
(i-adj) - early 11.
(u-verb) - to end 12.
- what 13.
- to do 14.
- careIree; at leisure 15.
(u-verb) - to rest; to take a break 16.
- particular 17.
- that 18.
(i-adj) - good 19.
- properly 20.
- vacation 21.
(u-verb) - to take 22.
- class; lecture 24.
- preparation 25.
(na-adj) - various 26.

Smith: Yamamoto-sensei, good aIternoon!

Yamamoto: Smith-san, good aIternoon. It already became thoroughly spring, hasn't it?

Smith: That's so, isn't it. Spring vacation really ended quickly.

Yamamoto: Is that so? What did (you) do in spring vacation?

Smith: (I) rested taking it easy so (I) didn't do anything in particular.

Yamamoto: That is good as well. (It's) also important to properly take rest so.

Smith: Yamamoto-sensei, what did (you) do Ior vacation?

Yamamoto: (I) was doing various things with class preparation.

Smith: (It's) important to properly take rest, you know.

Yamomoto: That's right.
State-of-Being Past Tense
Plain past nouns and adjectives
The conjugation rules Ior nouns and na-adjectives are identical once again Ior the past tense. The rule is also the
same Ior i-adjectives and negative Iorms as they both end in .
As usual, and conjugations start Irom the original pronunciation.
Plain past state-oI-being conjugation rules
For nouns/na-adjectives:Attach to the end
Examples
1.
2.
For i-adjectives/negative:Replace the with
Examples
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Exceptions: conjugates Irom
1.
2.
Summary oI plain nouns/na-adjective tenses
Positive Negative
Non-Past - (is) student - is not student
Past - was student - was not student
Summary oI plain i-adjective tense
Positive Negative
Non-Past - (is) tall - is not tall
Past - was tall - was not tall
Looking forward to next year
- spring 1.
- school term 2.
- already; more 3.
- soon 4.
- to end 5.
- Iinally 6.
- real 7.
(na-adjective) - various 8.
- summer 9.
- vacation 10.
- look Iorward to 11.
- certain, sure 12.
- second-year, sophomore 13.
- to become 14.
- pluralizing suIIix 15.
- to be pleased 16.
- class 17.
- more 18.
(sentence-ending particle) - a more casual and masculine version oI 19.
- to listen 21.

Alice: Spring term will also end soon, huh?

John: Finally. Cause it was really tough Ior various (things). Looking Iorward to summer vacation!

Alice: It was rough sure but it was Iun.

Lee: And then, we'll become second-year students, huh?

Jonn: That's right! And then, Tanaka-sensei will become our teacher.

Alice: What are you getting happy (about)? Tanaka-sensei's class is much more diIIicult, you now.

Lee: Tanaka-sensei is cute, huh?

John: (She's) cute, huh!

Alice: Not listening at all...
Polite past nouns and adjectives
The polite Iorm Ior past nouns and adjectives is similar to the plain past conjugation rules.
Past state-oI-being conjugation rules
For nouns/na-adjectives:Attach to the end
Examples
1.
2.
1.
For i-adjectives/negative:Add to the plain past tense
Examples
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
2.
Exceptions: Add to the plain past tense
1.
3.
2.
Summary oI polite nouns/na-adjective tenses
Positive Negative
Non-Past - (is) student - is not student
Past - was student - was not student
Summary oI polite i-adjective tense
Positive Negative
Non-Past - (is) tall - is not tall
Past - was tall - was not tall
Note that only applies to nouns and na-adjectives. Japanese learners have a tendency to do the
same Ior i-adjectives, Ior example but it is incorrect!
How was your vacation?
- Mexico 1.
- trip 2.
- Iamily 3.
- that much 4.
(i-adj) - Iar 5.
- place 6.
- Iairly 7.
- little while 8.

Yamamoto: Tanaka-sensei, how was the trip oI Mexico?

Tanaka: It was very good. Various (things) were interesting. Yamamoto-sensei also wa nted to go, right?

Yamamoto: Yes. But because (I have) Iamily, it's Iairly diIIicult to go to such a Ia r place.

Tanaka: I already went so (I) won't go Ior a while.

Yamamoto: That's why (Ior reasons I already said), (I) didn't have intention oI going together with (you) Tanaka-
sensei at all.
Verb sequences
In this section, we'll learn how to describe verbs that happen aIter, beIore, and at the same time as another verb.
To describe clauses that happen sequentially, we must Iirst learn all the te-Iorm conjugation rules.
Te-form conjugation rules
For the progressive tense, we only needed to learn the conjugation rules Ior plain verbs. However, nouns,
adjectives, and the negative Iorm can also be conjugated to the te-Iorm.
Te-Iorm conjugation rules
Plain nouns and na-adjectives : Attach to the noun or na-adjective.
Examples
1.
2.
3.
1.
l-adjectives and negative: Replace the last with .
Examples
1.
2.
3.
2.
Exceptions: As usual conjugates Irom
1.
2.
3.
Sequence of actions
The te-Iorm we learned at the beginning oI this chapter is very versatile and has many uses. In Iact, the te-Iorm
alone is used to express a sequence oI actions that happen one aIter another. This will make your conversations
smoother as it allows you to connect multiple sentences instead oI having many smaller, separate sentences that
are oIten too short.
- morning 1.
(ru-verb) - to get up; to happen 2.
- and then 3.
- breakIast 4.
Morning, (I) woke up. Then (I) ate breakIast. Then, (I) went to school.
Morning, (I) woke up, ate breakIast, and went to school.

Example
(i-adj) - gentle 1.
- head 2.
- popularity 3.
- what should one do (lit: how do) 4.
- drinking party 5.
Because she is pretty, gentle, and smart, (she's) popular with everybody.
1.
(You) don't do homework and what are you going to do?

2.
Drinking party is not today, it's tomorrow.

3.
Before and after
You can use and to describe an action as happening beIore or aIter another action.
- Iront; beIore 1.
- aIter 2.
Example
- bath 2.
(u-verb) - to enter 3.
- here 4.
(exception) - to come 5.
- properly 6.
- contact 7.
(exception) - to do 8.
- aIternoon 9.
- rice; meal 10.
- lunch 11.
(ru-verb) - to eat 12.
- homework 13.
(i-adj) - dangerous 15.
Take a bath beIore going to sleep.

1.
(I) properly contacted (you) beIore (I) came here.

2.
Did homework aIter eating lunch.

3.
Swim aIter eating is dangerous.

4.
Note: Be careIul oI the tense oI the verb that comes beIore and . is non-past while
is always past tense.
Another way to describe an action is to use the te-Iorm with . While similar to ,
conveys a stronger and more immediate relation between the two events, oIten used Ior situations where the
previous action needs to be completed Ior the next action to start.
Example
- dinner 1.
(u-verb) - to learn 2.
(i-adj) - good 3.
(I'll) do homework aIter (I) eat dinner.

1.
As Ior Katakana, (it) is good to learn aIter learning Hiragana

2.
Two simultaneous actions
You can express two actions that are taking place simultaneously by attaching to the end oI the stem
oI the Iirst verb. The tense is determined by the main verb at the end.
Using Ior concurrent actions
Change the Iirst verb to the stemand append
1.
2.
Example
- to speak 1.
- manners 2.
(i-adj) - bad 3.
- dictionary 4.
(u-verb) - to use 5.
- sentence 6.
(ru-verb) - to go through, to get across 8.
Do homework while watching TV.

1.
(It's) bad manners to speak while eating.

2.
Wrote Japanese text while using dictionary but (it) didn't get across at all.
3.
Listing multiple verbs
Partial list of verbs
In the second chapter, we learned how to list multiple nouns using and . Using the
te-Iorm, we now know how to list multiple verb clauses similar to . However, in order to create a partial
list oI verbs similar to and , we must use another construction described below.
Rule Ior creating partial list oI verbs
Conjugate all the verbs to the past tense and attach to each verb. Finally, add at the end.
1.
2.
Do things like eating and drinking.

3.
Example
- beer 2.
- sports 3.
- walk, stroll 4.
Like to do things like sleeping and reading book(s).

1.
(I) did things like drink beer and watch tv.

2.
Do (you) do things like sports and strolls?

3.
Partial list of reasons
There may be more than one reason Ior something but and can only connect two sentences.
Once again, we can use the te-Iorm to list multiple verbs Ior one reason. However, iI we want to imply that the
list is only several among a larger list oI potential reasons, we can add to the end oI each verb clause.
Note:: You must add Ior plain nouns and na-adjectives.
Because she is pretty, gentle, and smart, (she's) popular with everybody.
Because she is pretty, gentle, and smart (among other reasons) , (she's) popular with everybody.
Examples
(i-adj) - hot (Ior climate/weather only) 1.
- class 2.
- pool 3.
(ru-verb) - to get tired 4.
(i-adj) - sleepy 5.
Because today is hot (among other reasons) and there's also no class so let's go to the pool.
1.
(I'm) tired and sleepy (among other reasons), (I) don't want to go anywhere today.
2.
Just hanging out again
- music 1.
- lie; no way 2.
- same 3.

Alice: What were you doing yesterday?

John: There was no homework and (I) was Iree (among other reasons) so (I) watched TV and listened to music
(among other things). What about (you) Alice-chan.

Alice: There was homework. (I) was doing that, you know.

John: No way!

Alice: What are you going to do?

John: (It's) ok. (I'll) do it while listening to class.

Alice: Same as always, huh?
Phrasing verb clauses
Quoting a phrase
The most straight-Iorward reason to phrase a verb clause to quote somebody. A verb clause can be phrased by
adding to the end oI the clause. For verb clauses that end in an plain noun or na-adjective, we must add
. A direct quote would use the Japanese version oI double-quotes: but you can also paraphrase.
Example
(u-verb) - to say 1.
- he 2.
-she; girlIriend 3.
Smith-san said "he/she is not coming today".

1.
He always says (he/she) is busy.

2.
She said (he/she) is Iree next week.

3.
This grammar is also very useIul Ior deIining things and asking how one would say something.
- class 1.
- conversation 2.
- practice 3.
- toilet; bathroom 4.
- oI course 5.
- bathroom 6.
- inside 7.
- meaning 8.
- well then, in that case 9.
- diIIerence 10.
(u-verb) - to understand 11.
- mostly 12.
- context 13.
- Ior example 14.
- that kind oI, such 15.
(na-adj, noun) - stupid 16.
- normal 17.

Smith: Brown-san, where is the bathroom?

Brown: OI course, it's in the bathroom.

Yamamoto: Brown-san, in Japanese, toilet has the same meaning as bathroom.
toilet
Brown: Then, what do you say in Japanese Ior "toilet"?
toilet
Yamamoto: (You) also say Ior "toilet".
Brown: How do (you) understand the diIIerence?

Yamamoto: In most cases, (you) understand by context.
sit on the bathroom
Brown: For example, do would (you) say "sit on the bathroom" in Japanese?

Smith: Normally, (you) don't say such a stupid thing.
Other verbs for phrasing thoughts
There are many other verbs that can be used with a phrased verb clause as you can se e in the Iollowing
examples.
- college, university 1.
- caIeteria 2.
(i-adj) - tasty 3.
(u-verb) - to think 4.
- school 5.
- this 7.
- train 8.
(i-adj) - early, Iast 9.
(ru-verb) - to be late 10.
- email 11.
(u-verb) - to send 12.
- cigarette 13.
- to breathe in; to smoke 14.
- promise 15.
- study abroad 16.
(ru-verb) - to decide 17.
Do (you) think the college caIeteria is tasty?

1.
(I) heard that this train is the Iasted to school but (it's) not Iast at all.
2.
!
(I) sent by mail that I'm going to be late tomorrow!
3.
Promised not to smoke cigarettes.

4.
Decided to go do study abroad to Japan next year.

5.
In addition, this grammar also gives us another way to do introductions.

- Mariko (Iemale Iirst name) 1.
- bulletin board, online Iorum 2.
- English 3.
- practice 4.
- partner; other party 5.
(u-verb) - to Iind 6.
- a lot 7.
- together 8.
Mariko-san,
Nice to meet you. I'm Alice Smith. It was written in the Iorum that you are looking Ior a partner to practice
English so I'm sending you this email. I'm currently studying Japanese at an American university and thinking
that I want to practice Japanese a lot. How about studying together?
Smith Alice
Short, casual version of
The phrase is used so oIten and in so many ways that there is a shortened casual version: .
(i-adj) - late 2.
- to a greater degree 3.
- to get studying done; to become inIormed (lit: become study) 4.
- rarely 5.
- properly 6.
- textbook 7.
- me, myselI (slang, masculine) 8.
- to diIIer, to be diIIerent 9.

John: Alice-chan is late, huh?

Lee: (She's) busy with study so (she) said (she's) not coming today.

John: What are (you) going to do, studying all the time? Despite the Iact that (It's) said that you'll get a lot more
studying by practicing Japanese while playing with everybody.
Lee: I guess so. But, I think it's good to use textbook and study properly once in a while.

John: By saying that, you want to say (I) don't study at all?

Lee: That's not it!
Experiences
"Have you ever done |X|?", you can ask a question oI this nature quite literally by using the noun Ior a generic
event: and .
Examples
Have you ever gone to Japan? (lit: Is there an event (where you) went to Japan?)
1.
(I) have never sung song at Karaoke. (lit: There is no event (where I) sang song at Karaoke.)
2.
(I) had never eaten okonomiyaki but (I) Iinally ate (it) when (I) went to Japan.
(lit: There was no event (where I) ate okonomiyaki but Iinally ate when went to Japan.)
3.
LA
Smith-san,
Thank you Ior the email. I wrote that I wanted to practice English but I don't have much selI-conIidence yet so I
will write the reply in Japanese. I live in a place called Kawaguchi-shi north oI Tokyo. Have you ever gone to
Tokyo?There are a lot oI people and it's a very busy place. And then, there are lots oI t asty restaurants. Have
you ever eaten things like Okonomiyaki and Monjayaki? Monjayaki is Iamous in Tokyo.
As Ior Smith-san, are you living in America? As Ior me, l have net yet been to America but I'm thinking I want to
go sight-seeing to places like New York an LA. That's why I'm studying English but i t's pretty diIIicult and there's
still a lot oI things I don't understand.
Let's work hard together and study!
Mariko
Transitive and lntransitive
A transitive verb is one that requires an agent to complete the verb while an intransitive verb is complete in
itselI and doesn't require a direct object. In Japanese, it is important to distinguish between these two types oI
verbs because intransitive verbs cannot take a direct object (the particle). Below is a sample list oI
common transitive and intransitive verbs and examples oI how the particles change depending on which type oI
verb is used.
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
Transitive lntransitive
(ru-
verb)
to start
(u-
verb)
to begin
(ru-verb)
to put to an
end
(u-verb) to come to an end
(u-verb) to drop (ru-verb) to Iall
(u-verb) to take out (ru-verb)
to come out; to
leave
(ru-verb) to insert (u-verb) to enter
(ru-verb) to open (u-verb) to be opened
to close (u-verb) to be closed
(ru-verb) to attach (u-verb) to be attached
(u-verb) to erase (ru-verb) to disappear
(u-verb) to extract (ru-verb) to be extracted
Example
Start conversation with a person (you) don't know.

1.
Movie begins soon.

2.
Finally Iinished homework.

3.
Homework Iinally ended.

4.
What happened?

Tanaka: What happened? (lit: What is it that existed?)

Suzuki: This cup Iell.

Tanaka: It isn't that Suzuki-san (you) dropped it?

Suzuki: No, I didn't do anything, you know.

Tanaka: Then, is it that this cup Iell by itselI?

Suzuki: It was already Iallen beIore I came here so (I) don't know.

Tanaka: No, (I) saw Suzuki-san (you) dropping that cup, you know.
In this chapter, we learned the progressive and past tense Ior both positive and negative verbs. We also learned
the te-Iorm Ior the progressive tense as well a number oI other uses.
Here is a list oI examples using the various conjugations we learned in this chapter.
Te-Iorm Conjugation Examples
Plain Te-form Negative Te-form
Noun/na-adjective
l-adjective
Exception * *
Ru-verb
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending (u-verb)
-ending
-ending
Exception *
Exception * *
Exception * *
* exceptions
Past Conjugation Examples
Plain Past Negative Past Polite Past Polite Negative Past
Noun/na-adjective
l-adjective
Exception * * * *
Ru-verb
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
-ending
(u-verb)

-ending
-ending
Exception *
Exception * * * *
Exception

* * * *
* exceptions
Conjugation practice
We learned many conjugation rules in this chapter which you'll need to practice until they are almost instinctive
both Ior speaking and listening. I recommend using Ilash cards to practice conjugation rules using a mix oI every
type oI verb, adjective, and nouns.
Here are some suggestions and examples oI how you might want to make your own cards.The important thing is
to Iocus your cards on areas you are weak at and to make sure you are comIortable wi th conjugating any word in
any tense at a moment's notice.
Front side
- to buy
past
negative
negative-past
Back side
- to buy
Front side
- to buy
polite
polite past
polite negative
polite negative-past
Back side
- to buy
Front side
- to buy
buying
was buying
not buying
wasn't buying
Back side
- to buy

Front side
- to buy
want to buy
wanted to buy
not want to buy
didn't want to buy
Back side
- to buy
To get a good representation, you should use at least these common verbs, nouns, and adjectives.
- student 1.
- teacher 2.
(na-adj) - healthy; lively 3.
(na-adj) - distasteIul 5.
(na-adj) - clean; pretty 6.
(i-adj) - big 7.
(i-adj) - small 8.
(i-adj) - good 9.
(i-adj) - cool; handsome 10.
(ru-verb) - to wear 13.
(u-verb) - to cut 14.
(ru-verb) - to exist (animate) 15.
(u-verb) - to exist (inanimate) 16.
(u-verb) - to talk 17.
(u-verb) - to die 23.
(exception) - to come 25.
Telling stories
Conversation is oIten made up oI narratives whether it's about events happening around us or what people think
and Ieel. In this chapter, we've learned many grammatical structures that allow us to talk about what's happening
and what people are thinking and saying.
A good way to practice what you learned in this chapter is to talk or write about anything on your mind whether
it's something interesting that happened recently, somebody you've recently met, or what your plans are Ior the
Iuture. Below is a very small list oI things you can write and talk about.
- matter; event 1.
- oneselI 2.
(ru-verb) - to Ieel 4.
- recent; lately 5.
(ru-verb) - to occur; to awake 6.
- Japanese (language) 8.
- study 9.
- reason 10.
- Iuture 11.
Thing(s) oneselI is thinking and Ieeling lately (among other things).

1.
Interesting thing(s) that happened recently.

2.
Reason why (you) thought (you) want to study Japanese.

3.
Thing(s) (you) want to do in the Iuture.

4.
Numbers and amounts
We've been using numbers here and there but we've yet to comprehensively cover how to count or tell the date
and time. We will do that here in addition to learning how to express diIIerent amounts and make comparisons.
The Numeric System
Numbers starting from 100
We already learned all the numbers up to 99 in the Iirst chapter. We will now learn the numbers 100 up to 10
quadrillion. II you need a quick review, here are the Iirst 10 numbers.
Numerals 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Kanji
Reading
Here are the additional units Ior numbers starting Irom 100.
Numerals 100 1,000 10,000 10`8 10`12
Kanji
Reading
Note: Units larger than require another preceding number and cannot be used by themselves. For
example, does not mean 10,000, you need to add a one: .
Because the Japanese numeral system is based on units oI Iour not three, the same units get repeated once you
get past 10,000 until you get to 100,000,000. In other words, numbers are organized as 1,0000, 1,0000,0000,
10`12, 10`16 and so on.
You'll need to pay careIul attention to reading changes Ior some sound combinations.The chart below outlines
the numbers that are pronounced slightly diIIerently.
Numerals Kanji Reading
300
600
800
3000
8000
10`12
Example
Large numbers are rarely written in all Kanji as you can imagine something like
would be diIIicult to read. You will usually see a combination oI numbers and Kanjior just numerals
altogether.
1,234 - 1,234 1.
- 53,000 2.
Other numbers
Several ways to say zero and other types oI numbers are listed below. meaning "circle" is similar to
how we use "O" (the letter) in things like phone numbers, room numbers, and addresses.
- zero 1.
- zero 2.
- circle; zero 3.
- suIIix Ior room numbers 4.
X - negative X 5.
- period; dot; decimal point 6.
X.Y XY - X.Y 7.
XY - Y/X (Y oI X parts) 8.
Example
- room 203 1.
23.5 - twenty three point Iive 2.
- Iourth (1/4) 3.
- negative Iive 4.
lt's so confusing!
John: Oh already! (I) don't understand Japanese numbers at all!
1 million
Alice: It's certainly diIIicult, isn't it? Because in Japanese (you) count by units oI Iour, I just add Iour, divide by
three, and change (it) into (the) English number. For example, is 2 plus 4 and (it's) six so it becomes
1 million.
John: No, (I) don't understand at all! Lee-kun, it isn't diIIicult?
Lee: Korean is the same as Japanese so (it's) easy, you know.

John: That's cheating, isn't it?

Counting and counters
Counters
UnIortunately, counting discrete items isn't as straight-Iorward as just using the numbers we just learned in the
last section. We must use various counters depending on the type oI object we're counting. We already learned
the counter Ior age in the very Iirst chapter. Below are a list oI more common counters and when to use them.
Counter When to Use
To count number oI people
To count money in yen, the Japanese currency
To count long, cylindrical objects such as bottles or chopsticks
To count thin objects such as paper or shirts
To count bound objects usually books
To count small animals like cats or dogs
To count the age oI a living creatures such as people or animals
To count small (oIten round) objects
To count number oI times
To count number oI locations
As usual, the reading may change depending on what makes pronunciation easier as well as a couple oI
exceptions Ior . Fortunately, counters are always attached to the end oI the number, so we need onl y
worry about the readings Ior the Iirst 10 numbers. The higher digits are read the same as any other number.
Below, you can see a list oI readings Ior the counters with reading variations ( and have no variations). The
reading variations are in bold.
Counting with variations

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

10

20
There is also a generic counter Ior when none oI the more speciIic counter applies. This counter goes up to ten
Generic Counter
Numeral How many 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Kanji
Reading
You will likely encounter many other types oI counters in your studies. In Iact, , which we have
already seen used as a superlative, is yet another counter meaning #1 where #2 is , #3 is and
so Iorth.
Other useful counting vocab
There are some additional vocabulary that are useIul Ior counting in certain ways.
- attaches to a counter to indicate order 1.
- attaches to a counter to indicate each 2.
- attaches to a counter to indicate repeated intervals 3.
Example
Staple 2 sheets oI paper each.

1.
Who is the 3rd person that entered the store?

2.
Exercising every other day (spaced 1 day in between).

3.
Beer is fattening
Tanaka: Sorry I'm late.
Yamamoto: It's ok.
Tanaka: What are (you) drinking?
Yamamoto: DraIt beer.
Tanaka: Didn't (you) say (you) would not drink beer anymore?
Yamamoto: (I) think one bottle every once in a while is Iine.
Tanaka: As Ior beer, (you) get Iat soon. Which number bottle is this?
Yamamoto: Isn't two bottles ok every once in a while as well?
Tanaka: (I) think it's not ok.

Dates and Time
Dates
Dates are similar to using counters, one each Ior year, month, and day.
- year counter
- month counter
- day counter
The year counter is pretty straight-Iorward, as there are no reading variations. However, there are variations Ior
months and a whole bunch oI exceptions Ior days oI the month. The two lists below show all the months in a
year and the days oI the month. Special readings or variations are appropriately marked.
Months oI the year
Month Kanji Reading
What month
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Days oI the month
Day Kanji Reading
What day
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
19th
20th
21th
22th
23th
24th
25th
26th
27th
28th
29th
30th
31th
For completeness, here are all the days in the week.
- What day oI week 1.
- Monday 2.
- Tuesday 3.
- Wednesday 4.
- Thursday 5.
- Friday 6.
- Saturday 7.
- Sunday 8.
Date formats
The date Iormat employed in Japan is the same international date Iormat used in many other parts oI the word:
year, month, day in that order. Once again, it is common to use numerals to make it easier to read.
You may encounter another calendar native to Japan based on the reign oI each emperor when Iilling out public
documents. Basically, the year starts over Irom 1 called at the beginning oI each new
reign along with the name oI the era. For example, the era began in 1989, thereIore, the year 2009
would be . II you live in Japan, it would be beneIicial to remember the current year and your
birthday in the Japanese calendar. Below are the eras going back about 100 years. You can also search online Ior
convenient converters or charts with each year.
- Heisei era (1989/1/8-) 1.
- Showa era (1926/12/25-1989/1/7) 2.
- Taishou era (1912/7/30 - 1926/12/25) 3.
- The Iirst year oI an era until the end oI that year (12/31) 4.
Example
2009/12/24
1.

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

2.
1981/11/30
3.
1989/9/9
4.
Time
We already covered how to tell time in a previous chapter so here's a brieI review.
- hour counter 1.
- minute counter 2.
- AM 3.
- PM 4.
- halI 5.
Hour reading variations
Hour 4 o'clock 7 o'clock 9 o'clock
Kanji
Reading
Minute reading variations
Minutes How many minutes 1 min 3 min 4 min 6 min 8 min 10 min
Kanji
Reading
Example
- 1:01 1.
- 4:44 PM 2.
- 10:30 AM 3.
Time spans
We need to learn a couple more counters to express a span oI time versus a Iixed date or time. This counter is
attached to a date or time to express a length oI that time.
- span oI time
- a span oI week(s)
- a span oI month(s)
While these counters are pretty straight-Iorward, there are a number oI reading vari ations. In particular, while
usually means the Iirst oI the month and read as , it can also mean a span oI one day
when read as .
- 1st oI the month
- span oI one day
- span oI one week
- span oI one month
- span oI ten months
Example
- span oI two days 1.
- span oI three weeks 2.
- span oI two months 3.
Various amounts
Now that we learned how to use numbers and express date and time, it would be a good time to review how to
express various amounts. Most amounts can be expressed with just vocabulary, many oI which we've already
seen. Below is a list oI just some oI the vocabulary used to describe various amounts.
- a little 1.
- a lot 3.
(i-adj) - Iew 4.
(i-adj) - many 5.
- not yet 6.
- already; more 7.
- a little more 8.
- a lot more 9.
- a long time 10.
- this much 11.
- that much 12.
- that much (over there) 13.
- about 14.
Expectation of more
There are two particles that are used to express the word "only": and . Just like every other
particle, these particles attach to the end oI the word that they apply to. The primary diIIerence with is
that it mustbe used with the negative and emphasizes the lack oI something.
Example
- meat 1.
- tonight 2.
Eat only meat.

1.
Not eat anything but meat.

2.
3.
Let's go just the two oI us tonight. (lit: As Ior tonight, let's go by way oI only t wo people.)
(I) only have 500 yen.

4.
Too much of something
An excess oI something is expressed with the ru-verb which means, "to pass" or "to
exceed". There are several rules Ior attaching this verb to adjectives and other ver bs. As is a regular
ru-verb, all subsequent conjugations are the same as any other ru-verb.
Using to indicate it's too much
Verbs: Change the verb to the stem and attach
Examples
1.
2.
Na-adjectives: Attach
Examples
1.
2.
l-adjectives: Remove the last and attach
As always, conjugates Irom
Examples
1.
2.
3.
Negative verbs and adjectives : Replace the last Irom with and then attach
Examples
1.
2.
Example
- yesterday 1.
- hangover 3.
- head 4.
(i-adj) - painIul 5.
- amount 6.
(i-adj) - many 7.
- a lot more 8.
(i-adj) - small 9.
- size 10.
(u-verb) - to request; to order 11.
- diet 12.
- to do 13.
(i-adj) - good 14.
(I) drank too much yesterday and (my) head hurts with hangover.
1.
The amount is too much so (I) ordered a much smaller size.

2.
Doing (a) diet is Iine but (you're) not eating too much (too much oI not eating).
3.
On a diet
- stomach 1.
(u-verb) - to empty 2.
- why 3.
- yet; still 4.
- hour counter 5.
- today 6.
- breakIast 7.
- lunch 9.
- yesterday 10.
- evening 11.
- dinner 12.
- diet 13.
- to do 14.
- a lot 15.
- normal 16.
(ru-verb) - to begin 18.
- when 19.
- intention 21.
- already 22.
- tomorrow 23.
(ru-verb) - to stop; to quit 24.
- span oI one day 25.
- to ask; to listen 26.
- event, matter, generic happening 27.
(ru-verb) - to get skinny 28.
- obvious 29.
Alice: (I'm) hungry. (lit: stomach has emptied)
John: Why? It's still 2 o'clock, you know.
Alice: (I) didn't eat anything but breakIast today.
John: Why didn't (you) eat lunch?
Alice: Last night, (I) ate too much dinner so (I'm) on a diet.
John: Normally, (you) don't say you're on a diet aIter you ate a lot yesterday.
Alice: That's why I just started.

John: (You) intend to be on a diet until when?
Alice: (It's) no good already. (I) will quit Irom tomorrow.
John: (I've) never heard oI a one day only diet.
Alice: (I) wonder iI that's why (I) don't lose weight?
John: Obviously.
Comparisons
In order to make a comparison, you have to deIine either side oI the comparison using and/or
. deIines the direction the comparison is leaning toward while deIines the side it's
leaning away Irom. The important thing to remember is that is a noun while is a particle.
Another particle oIten used in making comparisons is , which describes the extent oI something.
Example
- direction; side 1.
(particle) - rather than 2.
(particle) - extent oI 3.
- which way 4.
- dog 5.
- cat 6.
- English (language) 7.
- Japanese (language) 8.
Which do (you) like more, dog or cat? (lit: Dog and cat, which side is the one (you like?)
1.
Like dog more than cat. (lit: Like the side oI dog rather than cat.)
2.
Hate dog more than cat. (lit: Hate the side oI dog rather than cat.)
3.
Don't like cat as much as dog. (lit: Don't like cat to extent oI dog.)
4.
5.
Cats or Dogs
Alice: Which do (you) like more, dog or cat
Lee: I like both. (lit: Like either way also.)

John: Isn't dog better. Because (they're) smarter than cats.
Alice: But dog(s) are tougher to take care oI and don't (you) think cat(s) are cuter ?
John: (I) think both are tough to take care oI and as Ior me, I think dogs are much more cute.
Alice: Why do (you) hate cat(s) that much?
John: (I'm) not saying (I) hate (them)!
Alice: (I'm) sure, when (you) were a child, something bad occurred with a cat, huh?
John: No, no really...
Alice: Anyway, (I) have never met a person that hates cat(s) to the extent oI John-san.
John: Like I said, (I) don't hate (them).

In this chapter, we learned how to work with numbers and amounts. Numbers, dates, and counting is a Iairly
tricky thing to master with all the various readings and exceptions so it's something that will require quite a bit oI
practice to master.
Here is a list oI simple questions you can ask or answer to practice various dates and numbers.
- date 1.
- what month 2.
- what date 3.
- birthday 4.
- how many; how old (oIten used with honoriIic preIix) 5.
- what time 6.
- store 7.
(particle) - Irom 8.
(u-verb) - to open 10.
- Iamily 11.
- how many people 12.
What is today's date?

1.
What month, what day is tomorrow?

2.
When is (your) birthday?

3.
How old (are you)?

4.
What time is it now?

5.
From what time to what time is (the) store open?

6.
As Ior (your) Iamily, how many people?

7.
Shopping and other activities involving amounts
All the work we did in this chapter to learn how to use numbers, count, and compare amounts will come in handy
when dealing with money in Japan. II you are planning to visit Japan, you'll be ableto get a lot oI practice Ior this
chapter by shopping, dining, and generally getting around.
Yen, the Japanese currency, is roughly equivalent to a penny so 100 yen is around one US dollar.
Shopping
- electronic 1.
- dictionary 2.
- how much? 3.
- Japanese currency counter 4.
(i-adj) - high; expensive 6.
(i-adj) - cheap 7.
- this way 8.
- model 9.
- how 10.
(u-verb) - to be diIIerent 11.
- Chinese (language) 12.
- study 13.
(u-verb) - to enter 14.
Alice: How much is this electronic dictionary?

3
Store clerk: (It's) 30,000 yen.

Alice: (It's a) little too expensive, isn't it? Is there (one) that is a little more cheap?
25
Store clerk: This model is 25,000 yen.

Alice: How is (it) diIIerent with this?

Store clerk: (Are you) studying Chinese? That also has Chinese (in it) so (it's a) l ittle more expensive.

Alice: For the purpose oI studying Japanese, which (do you) think is better?


Store clerk: Let's see. This model has only English but (there's) more example sentences and words so (I) think
this model is better.

Alice: Is that so? Then (I) will go with this one.
Traveling
- Narita (city name) 1.
- airport 2.
- ticket 3.
- how much 4.
- station 5.
- person 6.
- express 7.
- Japanese currency counter 8.
- already; more 9.
- a little 10.
(i-adj) - cheap 11.
(u-verb) - to exist (inanimate) 12.
- a little 13.
- normal 14.
- train 15.
- which way 16.
- direction 17.
- early; Iast 18.
- oI course 19.
- about how much 20.
- approximately, around 21.
- student 22.
- discount 23.
- unIortunate 24.
(exp) - to decide on something (lit: to do toward) 25.
Lee: How much is (a) ticket until Narita airport.
Station person: Narita Express is 3,000 yen.
Lee: Is there none that is a little more cheap?
Station person: Regular train ticket is 1,500 yen.
Lee: Which is Iaster?
Station person: OI course, (the) express is Iaster.
Lee: By about how much Iaster?

Station person: About 30 minutes.
Lee: ...Is there (a) student discount?
Station person: It's unIortunate, but there isn't.
Lee: Then, (I) will do regular train.

Potential and uncertainty
Culturally, Japanese people tend to only be assertive when they're absolutely sure oI something. For less certain
situations, Japanese has many ways to express exactly how certain or uncertain something is. In this chapter, we
will learn how to express various degrees oI certainty about things that are possible, probable, and conditional.
Expressing potential
Potential Form
The potential Iorm describes the Ieasibility oI the action. The rules Ior changing a verb into the potential Iorm is
given below. All verbs in the potential Iorm become ru-verb.
Rules Ior creating potential Iorm
For ru-verbs: Replace the with
Example
1.
2.
For u-verbs: Replace the u-vowel sound with the e-vowel equivalent and attach .
Example
1.
2.
Exceptions:
1.
2.
3.
Example
- Kanji 1.
(u-verb) - to read 2.
- tomorrow 3.
- work 4.
- today 5.
- event 7.
- preparation 8.
- tomorrow 9.
(ru-verb) - to be able to do 11.
Can (you) read Kanji?

1.
Tomorrow is work so can't drink very much today.

2.
Can (you) do preparations Ior (the) event by tomorrow?

3.
For ru-verbs, you can drop the Irom . For example, the potential Iorm can also
be expressed as instead oI . However, you should practice with the Iull
conjugation as the shorter Iorm is more casual.
Example
- bus 1.
- hour counter 2.
(ru-verb) - to come out 3.
(ru-verb) - to occur; to awake 4.
- Ieeling 5.
(i-adj) - bad 6.
75
Bus is leaving at 7 so (are you) able to wake up at 5?
1.
Don't Ieel good (lit:Ieeling is bad) so can't eat very much today.
2.
Events that are possible
Another way to express potential is to use the noun Ior a generic event: and . This
is used to describe an event that is possible and is more generic than conjugating the verb directly to the potential
Iorm.
Example
- here 1.
- cigarette 2.
(ru-verb) - to be able to do 3.
- to breathe in; to smoke 4.
- matter; event 5.
- this 6.
- TV 7.
- program (e.g. TV) 8.
- not yet 9.
- internet 10.
Able to smoke cigarette here?

1.
Not able to watch this TV show on the internet yet.

2.
As you can see Irom the examples, this pattern is used to describe what is possible (or not) in general rather than
Ior a speciIic person or thing.
Other potential verbs
- to be visible 1.
- to be audible 2.
- able to exist 3.
The potential Iorm oI and ( and respectively) are only used to
describe the ability to see and hear, not whether something is visible or audible. Japanese has two separate verbs
to describe the latter: and . The examples below show the diIIerence between the
ability or capability to see/hear versus what is visible/audible.
Example
- behind 1.
- screen; image; picture 2.
- PC, computer 3.
(i-adj) - old 4.
(i-adj) - late; slow 5.
- video 6.
- me; myselI; I 7.
- voice 8.
- radio 9.
- net, network, internet 10.
Can (you) see the screen Irom the back? (lit: Is the screen visible Irom the back?)
1.
Computer is old and slow so not able to see video. (lit: Because computer is old and slow, not capable oI
seeing video.
2.
Can (you) hear my voice? (lit: Is my voice audible?)

3.
(You) can listen to radio on (the) net as well? (lit: Able to hear radio on (the) net as well?)
4.
Another verb to pay attention to is , which cannot be conjugated to the potential Iorm. Instead, to
express that something can exist, you must use the verb . This verb is very curious in that
can either be read as or but iI conjugated, it must always be read as . You may wonder
how oIten one talks about the ability to exist. In practice, this word is primarily used to describe whether a
situation or event can occur.
Example
That could happen. (lit: That can exist.)

1.
That could happen. (lit: That can exist.)

2.
That can never happen. (lit: That can't exist.)

3.
- Kanji 2.
- homework 3.
(u-verb) - read 6.
(i-adj) - skilled; delicious 7.
- as much as possible 9.
- practice 10.
- me, myselI (slang, masculine) 11.
(u-verb) - to copy 12.
- a lot (amount) 14.
- besides, moreover 15.
- in the Iirst place, originally 16.
- you (slang) 17.
(ru-verb) - to show 18.
- oneselI 19.
- when 20.
- secretly 21.
- intention 22.
- already; expression oI exasperation 23.
(ru-verb) - to believe 24.
John: Alice-chan, what (are you) doing?
Alice: Homework.
John: What is this? (Are you) using Kanji? (I) can't read (it) at all.
Alice: (I) can't write Kanji well yet so (I'm) using Kanji as much as possible and practicing.
John: I don't use Kanji at all so (I) can't copy Alice-chan's homework, you know.
Alice: Japanese uses a lot oI Kanji so (it's) good to practice as much as possible. Besides, (I) won't show you
(my) homework to you in the Iirst place. (You) can't do (your) homework by yourselI?
John: (My) intention was to secretly copy (it) when Alice-chan is not there.
Alice: (I) can't believe it.

Various degrees of certainty
There are various vocabulary words that can express various degrees oI certainty, some oI which is listed below.
But beyond memorizing additional vocabulary, we also need to learn a number oI sentence endings that also
indicate various degrees oI certainty.
- absolutely, without a doubt 1.
- surely 2.
- probably, perhaps, more likely than not 3.
lndicating a fair amount of certainty
You will oIten hear at the very end oI the sentence during, Ior instance, a weather Iorecast. It is
used to express a Iair amount oI certainty when used with a Ilat intonation.
Example
- evening 1.
- rain 2.
(u-verb) - to precipitate 3.
- tomorrow 4.
(ru-verb) - to be sunny 5.
At night, (it will) likely rain.

1.
Tomorrow (will) likely be sunny.

2.
In casual situations, when expressed with a rising intonation, it is used to seek agreement similar to .
However, while is used Ior what the speaker believes to be generally agreeable, can be
more assertive and opinionated. is another more masculine version oI the casual usage oI
.
Example
(u-verb, exp) - to be in time Ior 1.
- time 3.
(u-verb) - to exist 4.
- yet; still 5.
- ok 6.
(I) said won't make it in time, didn't I?

1.
There's time so (it's) probably still ok.

2.
lndicating a possibility
is another sentence ending that expresses a neutral possibility with about 50 level oI
conIidence. It is simply the and particles combined with the potential negative Iorm oI
(literally meaning "can't know even iI..."). This means that it conjugates just likeany other negative ru-verb.
Example
- tomorrow 1.
(i-adj) - late 2.
(u-verb) - to become 3.
- other 4.
- store 5.
- direction 6.
(i-adj) - cheap 7.
Might be late tomorrow.

1.
Another store may be cheaper.

2.
Appearances and hearsay
We oIten make deductions based on appearances and observations. In this section, we will learn how to describe
what things appear to be based on our own and other people's observations.
Appearance or manner
The noun is the most generic word used to describe an appearance or manner oI a state or
action.
Example
-she; girlIriend 1.
- student 2.
- movie 3.
- to see; to watch 4.
- Iriend 6.
- already 7.
(u-verb) - to go home 8.
She appears to be (a) student.

1.
(It) appears (you) like to watch movie(s).

2.
Looks like Iriend went home already.

3.
Outward appearance (casual)
may, at times, sound somewhat Iormal and stiII. For casual situations, you can substitute
Ior to describe what something/someone looks like or appears to be.
at Iirst glance, looks identical to meaning "want to see". You could even say it has a
similar meaning as an outward appearance is how one wants to see something. However,the key diIIerence is
that while all verbs in the Iorm such as conjugate as an i-adjective, this
acts like a noun same as .
Example
- tomorrow 1.
- rain 2.
- this 3.
- stuIIed toy 4.
- dog 5.
- this morning 6.
- head 7.
- yet; still 8.
- cold (illness) 9.
(u-verb) - to pull 10.
Tomorrow looks like rain, you know.

1.
Doesn't this stuIIed toy look like (a) dog?

2.
(My) head hurt this morning as well so it looks like (I) still have a cold.
3.
His wiIe is apparently amazingly cute, you know.

4.
Guessing from observation
In English, "seems like" or "looks like" is also used to made an educated guess. In Japanese, this is expressed by
appending to the verb or adjective with the Iollowing rules. The resulting word becomes a
na-adjective.
Rules Ior guessing outcome using
Verbs: Conjugate to the stem and append
Example

- Looks like cup is about to Iall
1.
- Seems like it's going to rain

2.
Na-adjectives:Append
Example
Seems like Iree (not busy)

1.
l-adjectives: Drop the last and append
Exception: For (seems good)
Example
(Based on guessing) looks tasty.

1.
Seems Iun.
2.
Negative forms:Replace the last with and append
Example
Seems like (he/she) will not come.

1.
(Based on guessing) looks not tasty.

2.
Example
This looks very tasty!

1.
2.
Doesn't (she) seem to be very Iree because she has no kids and doesn't do (a) job?
Expressing hearsay
In order to express what something appears to be based on what one heard Irom other people, we append
(or ) to the verb clause. At Iirst glance, this grammar looks very similar to the previous
grammar, however, the grammar rules are diIIerent. Also, this grammar must end in or (Ior
polite speech).
Rules Ior expressing hearsay using
Nouns and Na-adjectives: Add the declarative to the clause then attach or
.
Example
(I) heard he is Iluent in Japanese.

1.
(I) heard that his wiIe is very pretty.

2.
All other cases:Attach or to the clause.
Example
(I) heard that (it will) snow tomorrow.

1.
(I) heard that (he) doesn't want to come out because (it's) raining.
2.
(I) heard that everybody is busy with the Iinal exam(s) next week.
3.
Appearance from hearsay or behavior
is another grammatical expression that expresses either hearsay or behavior. When used to express
hearsay, unlike Irom the previous section, it can be used to express impressions Irom non-speciIic
hearsay rather than something speciIic that was said. Simply attach to the end oI the clause to
express hearsay or behavior. It conjugates just like a regular i-adjective.
Examples of hearsay
It seems (based on hearsay) that (the) new amusement park that was built this year i s very big and Iun.
1.
(I) heard that it's best to raise baby by breast milk Ior Iew months aIter birth.
2.
Examples of behavior
(It's) not like him to be late to the promised time.

1.
That child is very reliable and doesn't act like a child.

2.
"Acting like a man" will probably have diIIerent meanings depending on the person.
3.
Slang expression for similarity
A casual way to express similarity is to attach to the word that reIlects the resemblance. Because
this is a very casual expression, you can use it as a casual version Ior the diIIerent types oI expression Ior
similarity covered above . It conjugates just like a regular i-adjective.
Example
Today seems like rain so (I) brought (an) umbrella.

1.
Lately, (it's) cold and seems like (I have a) cold.

2.
Isn't Alice a little manly?

3.
Trying
There are several diIIerent ways to try something in Japanese including making an eIIort toward something,
making an attempt at something, and trying something out to see what happens.
Striving for a goal
In order to express "try" as striving toward a goal, we use the same we learned in the last section to
describe the manner or appearance oI the way we want to act. In this case, we use th e verb "to do" and the
target particle to do toward the manner or appearance oI the verb clause.
Example
Try not to smoke cigarettes (lit: Do toward manner oI not smoking).

1.
Trying not to eat sweet things (lit: Doing toward manner oI not eating sweet things).
2.
Was trying to exercise a lot more but soon gave up (lit: Was doing toward manner oI doing more exercise
but soon gave up).
3.
Making an attempt
The volitional Iorm can also be used to describe an attempt or eIIort to do a single action. In this case, we use the
volitional Iorm Iollowed by and the verb ("to do").
Example
Dog always tries (attempts) to eat people's Iood.

1.
Even though (it's a) holiday, (my) parents don't try (make an eIIort) to go anywhere so (it's) boring.
2.
Experimenting
A third way to express trying (not as a goal or eIIort) is to do something as an experiment. For example, trying
out something Ior the Iirst time. This grammar is expressed by changing the verb to the te-Iorm and attaching the
verb ("to see").
Example
Try asking teacher question.

1.
Tried eating Japanese Iood.

2.
Unintended Actions
Sometimes we do things that we didn't mean to and there are a couple ways we can express actions that we did
not intend to take.
We can use the noun Ior intention to express what was or wasn't intended.
- intention; plan
Example
(I) intend on going to do shopping later.

1.
(I) don't intent on going out at night so (you) don't need (to) worry.
2.
(I) didn't intend on telling the teacher, you know.

3.
However, only describes an intent regardless oI actual actions taken. There is another verb that is
used to express an action that is taken by accident or unintentionally:
Using for unintended actions
The verb has two main deIinitions: 1) to Iinish; to do something completely and 2) Ior something
unintended to happen. The latter deIinition is used Ior situations when you did something you didn't mean to do.
To use this with other verbs, attach to the te-Iorm oI the verb.
Example
Oh no! (I) Iorgot to bring (my) homework!

1.
There's nothing you can do about something that already happened (unintentionally).
2.
(I) can't resist so (I) unintentionally end up buying (it).

3.
Casual version of
In casual speech, the can be substituted by while is
substituted by . Both and conjugate just like regular u-verbs.
Example
(I) already ordered (oops) so what should (we) do?

1.
(I) called my girlIriend by my ex-girlIriend's name (by accident)!

2.
(I) can't Iorget something that I already learned (unintentionally) right?

3.
There is also a much less common casual version oI and that sounds much
more rough and coarse and is usually only used by older males. This version replaces and
with and respectively. The result is conjugated the same as any
u-verb.
Example
Did (you) Iorget to contact (me) again?

1.
Sorry, (I) read your email (by accident).

2.
Conditional
There are Iour ways to express conditional in Japanese, each with a slightly diIIerent meaning and used in
diIIerent situations.
General Conditional
The most generic conditional without any assumptions or embedded meanings is the conditional. The
conjugation rules Ior the conditional is below.
Conjugation rules Ior
For verbs: change the last /u/ vowel sound to the /e/ vowel sound and attach
Example
1.
2.
3.
For i-adjectives and negatives ending in : drop the last and attach
Example
1.
2.
3.
For nouns and na-adjectives : attach
Example
1.
2.
Example
II (you) call early, (you) can make (a) reservation easily.

1.
II tomorrow is not busy, won't (you) to go to watch movie?

2.
II (he/she) is (a) nice person, (I) think (we) can become Iriends.
3.
Past Conditional
The past conditional is created by adding to the past tense Iorm oI a verb, noun, or adjective. The Iull
Iorm is but the is usually omitted.
This Iorm can also used in the past tense to describe something that was unexpected instead oI a condition.
Past conditional conjugation rule
Change the noun, adjective, or verb to its past tense and attach
Example
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Example
II (you) are busy today, let's meet tomorrow.

1.
II (you) didn't want to go, why did (you) say (you) wanted to go?
2.
When (I) returned home, (the) dog was scattering around (the) garbage.
3.
Contextual conditional
The contextual conditional is used by attaching to a noun, verb, or adjective. The Iull Iorm is
but the is usually omitted.
This conditional is used to describe something in a given context. OIten, there is no actual conditional, ie "Well,
iI that's the case, then..."
Contextual conditional usage rule
Attach to the noun, verb, or adjective
Example
1.
2.
3.
4.
Example
II everybody is saying (they) don't want to go, I won't go as well.

1.
II (you're) reIerring to Alice-chan, (she) when home already, you know.

2.
II (you're) reIerring to (the) story oI (what) happened yesterday, (I) already heard Irom Tanaka-san.
3.
II (you're) not busy, why can't you meet (me)?

4.
Natural consequence
The natural conditional is used by attaching verb or i-adjective or Ior nouns and na-adjectives.
This conditional is used to describe things that happen as a natural consequence with very high certainty ie, "II
you do X, Y certainly happen."
Natural conditional usage rule
Attach to the noun, verb, or adjective
Example
For nouns/na-adjectives:Attach
Example
1.
2.
For verbs/i-adjectives and negatives ending in : Attach
Example
1.
2.
3.
Example
II (we) don't go now starting now, (we) won't make the train.
1.
II he's Iree, (he) always plays game(s).

2.
II (you) eat that much, (you'll) get Iat Ior sure.

3.
Examples of different scenarios
It's not oIten obvious nor easy to explain when you would use one type oI conditional over another. The best way
to master conditionals is by learning Irom many examples over time. To help you get started, below are a Iew
examples to illustrate some scenarios where some conditionals are more appropriate then others. However, keep
in mind, that no version is necessarily incorrect as it can depend on the context and the message the speaker is
trying to convey.
- student
II (you) are (a) student, (you) can use student discount.

(Generic conditional, no assumption whether you a student)
1.
II only (he/she) was (a) student oI here, (I) would be able to meet again soon.
(Same as generic conditional but used Ior the past tense)
2.
II (he/she) is a student, (I) thought (he/she) would study more but (he/she) doesn't at all.
(He/she is a student, ie "since he is a student...")
3.
II (you) are (a) student, ramen here is 400 yen.

(Stating a Iact)
4.
- busy
II (you're) not busy, let's go see (a) movie.

(Generic conditional with no assumption oI whether you're busy or not)
1.
II (you're) that busy, why (did you) take a nap?

(Same as generic conditional but used Ior the past tense)
2.
II (you're) that busy, let's talk tomorrow.

(It's known that the person is busy ie "given that you're busy...")
3.
II (I) become busy with work, (I) always want to eat junk Iood.
(Predetermined outcome, ie "when busy...")
4.
- understand
II (you) understand (the) Iormula, (the) test is simple.

(Generic conditional that can be applied to anybody)
1.
II (I) know the time and place, (I'll) send email to everybody.
(Used to express what happens aIter, ie "once (I) know...")
2.
II (you) don't understand my Ieeling(s), there is no need to talk anymore.

(The person doesn't seem to understand, ie "since you don't understand...")
3.
II (you) don't know (the) phone number, (you) can't contact (him/her/them), right?
(Expressing almost 100 certainty)
4.
Phrasing questions
When we want to talk about a question in a larger sentence, we can treat the sentenc e as a phrase by using the
question marker.
Example
Do (you) know when Tanaka-san is coming?

1.
(I'm) agonizing whether I should go to Japan next year Ior study abroad.
2.
When it's a yes/no question, you can append an optional to represent the other choice.
Example
- to be troubled over something, to agonize over a decision 1.
- study abroad 2.
Do (you) know whether Tanaka-san is coming tomorrow or not?

1.
(I'm) agonizing whether I should go to Japan next year Ior study abroad or not.
2.
Whether (I) want to go to Japan or not, (I) don't know.

3.
In this chapter, we learned how to deal with uncertainty in various ways. We can all think oI many situations
where things are not 100 certain. Common scenarios include talking about the weather, news, and the Iuture.
Write or discuss with your language partner what you hope achieve in the Iuture whether it's Iamily, school, or
career.
Optional and required
In this chapter, we will learn how to talk about things that one may or may not have to do. This includes asking
Ior Iavors, making requests and suggestions, and the various command Iorms.
Consequences
Things of no consequence
The expressions "even iI", "regardless", or "no matter" are used when something is oI no consequence to
something else. In Japanese, the same notion is expressed by combining the te-Iorm with the inclusive
particle.
Example
As Ior Tokyo, (it) Ieels like it's crowded wherever (you) go.
1.
Answer is the same no matter how many times (you) ask.

2.
Will (I) Iind (a) good job even iI (I) don't go to college?
3.
Can (I) do this part-time job even iI (I'm a) student?

4.
Asking for permission
We can also ask Ior or grant permission by saying it's ok or Iine even iI we do a certain action using the same
grammar.
Example
Is it Iine even iI (I) go to the toilet?

1.
Older sister said it's Iine to eat (it).

2.
Even iI it's late, it's Iine until next week.

3.
4.
As Ior identiIication, it is ok even iI it's (a) student id?
Things we don't have to do
II we say it's ok or Iine even iI we don't do something by using the negative Iorm, it means we don't have to do
it.
Example
Don't have to do anything. (lit: (It's) good even iI (you) do nothing.)

1.
Tomorrow is (a) holiday, so (you) don't have to come, you know. (lit: Because tomorr ow is (a) holiday,
(it's) ok even iI (you) don't come.)
2.
Required actions
We learned how to say we don't have to do something in the last section but we did not cover how to talk about
things that haveto be done. Because oI the way it's phrased in Japanese, the grammar Ior saying something has
to be done is completely diIIerent than the grammar Ior saying something doesn't have to be done.
First, let's look at how to express something that one must not do.
Things that one must not do
Actions that are not optional are expressed by using one oI the three words:
and . These are all negative expressions (the Iirst two is actually using the negative Iorm) meaning that
something won't do or is no good. Conjugating these expressions are simple iI we know where they originate
Irom.
(ru-verb) - can work; can make it; lit: can go potential Iorm oI 1.
(u-verb) - to become 2.
(na-adj) - no good 3.
We can use and by themselves as shown the example below cannot
be used by itselI .
Example
Is using cell phone here bad?

1.
That's wrong/bad/no good.

2.
Telling (your) parents is what was no good.

3.
We can use either oI the three words with other verbs to say that action is no good or in essence, "one must not
do the action" by using the Iollowing rule.
How to say: Must not |verb|
Take the te-Iorm oI the verb, add the (wa) particle and then attach either
or .
Example

1.

2.

3.
Example
1.
2.
3.
Things that must be done
In order to say that something must be done, we say not doing something is bad using the three words we just
learned.
Asking for favors
Making requests
Making suggestions
Command Forms

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The Complete Guide to Learning Japanese

Disclaimer: This is still a work in progress!

DeIinition: sun; day

DeIinition: origin; book

DeIinition: ahead; precedence

DeIinition: tall; expensive

DeIinition: middle; inside

DeIinition: hot (Ior climate only)

DeIinition: heat; Iever

(I am) Alice Smith.

(As Ior) this, what is (it)?

(As Ior) that, (it's) a pen.

(As Ior) now, busy?

(As Ior) now, (I'm) a little busy.

(As Ior) movie(s), (do you) like? (lit: is likable?)

(I) like (them). (lit: Is likable.)

As Ior today, (it's) hot, isn't it?

As Ior tomorrow, (I'm) busy, you know.

As Ior ramen, (it's) tasty you know, isn't it?!

lively; healthy person

As Ior Japanese, (you're) good at it, aren't you? (Ieminine)

As Ior Japanese, (you're) good at it, aren't you? (masculine)

Name oI me (my name) is Kim.

This car is car oI Japan (Japanese car).

Pen is above oI desk.

Bag is below oI desk.

Tanaka-sensei is teacher oI Japanese (Japanese teacher).

Like the red one.

Which one is Smith-san's?

As Ior salad, don't like very much.

As Ior this book, (it's) not interesting, you know.

As Ior this year's winter, (it's) not cold, is it?

As Ior pizza, do (you) like it?

What kind oI pizza do (like)? (Among all possibilities)

As Ior Iood that (you) like, what is it?

As Ior Iood, what is it that you like? (Among all possibilities)

As Ior Smith-san, busy.

Smith-san is the onethat is busy.

Tanaka-sensei is the one that (I) like.

Isn't (his) class the thing thatis interesting?

(I'm) busy but (I'm) Iree tomorrow.

(I'm) busy but (I'm) Iree tomorrow.

(It's) noisy here so(I) don't like it very much.

(It's) noisy here so(I) don't like it very much.

This year is recession so despite it being Christmas, customers are Iew.

Smith: That's why I don't like (it) very much.

He's a student? (Seeking explanation why he's a student)

Yamamoto: No, nevermind (lit: (it's) Iine).

What is your hobby?

What is your Iavorite Iood?

What kind oI music do you like?

Do you eat sushi?

You eat sushi?

Play with Iriend.

Talk with Lee-san.

Meet with relative.

As Ior relative(s), come tomorrow

Stand in Iront oI people.

Speak in Japanese. (Speak by means oI Japanese.)

Eat with chopsticks. (Eat by means oI chopsticks.)

Watch movie at movie theatre.

Busy with work. (Busy by means oI work.)