～んです can be difficult for Japanese learners to use correctly.

Grammatically, it’s easy to use it: ～んです simply just comes

after the dictionary form of a word, and it always comes at the end
of a sentence or phrase. So what makes it so problematic for
learners? The answer is that ～んです has a social function, so
the trick is knowing when it’s appropriate to use it.

But first, here are common variations depending on politeness

level and the preceding word.

 Casual conversation, following a verb & い adjective: ～ん

だ or ～のだ
 Casual conversation, following a noun & な adjective: ～な
んだ
 Casual conversation, following anything: ～の／〜ん
 Polite conversation, following a verb & い adjective: ～んで
す or ～のです
 Polite conversation, following a noun & な adjective: ～なん
です or なのです

There are eight main ways that ～んです is used.

1. 説明：Explanation

The first person will end a question with んです to request an

explanation from their partner, and the second person answers
with んです to provide an explanation.

Example 1
  Person A:「どうして遅刻したんですか？」

o “Why were you late?”

 Person B:「すみません。込んでいたんです。」

o “I’m sorry. It was crowded.”

Example 2

 Person A :「レストランに行こ？」

o “Want to go to a restaurant?
 Person B :「 レストランに行きたいってことは、お腹が空
いてるの？」

o “Since you said you want to go to a restaurant, I take it

you’re hungry?”

2. 納得：Realization / Understanding

んです can be used at the end of a statement to express that the

speaker just discovered or realized something, and might even
convey the feeling of surprise.

Example 3

 「どうやったらこの機械動くのかな？あー。ここを押せば
いいんだ。」
 “I wonder how this machine works… Ah! If I press here, it
works.”
Example 4

 Person A :（英語を教えているとき）「ここは"it"じゃなく
て"this"だよ！」

o (When teaching English) “It shouldn’t be ‘it’ here. It’s

‘this’!”
 Person B :「そうなんですね！」

o “I see!”

Related to this, 「そうなんですね」and「そうなんですか」are

polite phrases that listeners use to show that what they’ve just
heard is new and interesting to them. The English meaning is
similar to, i.e. “Is that so?”. The listeners are mostly showing that
they understand and are paying attention, but there’s a small
nuance of being surprised or having just learned something.

Example 5

 Person A :（たくさん食べている）

o (Person A is eating a lot)

 Person B :「たくさん食べるんですね！」

o “You’re sure eating a lot!”

For this particular social function of んです, it’s often paired with
repeating back what the person’s partner has just said. An
important part of Japanese culture is “listening out loud.” Listeners
make brief verbal utterances called 相槌 （あいづち） to show
the other person that they’re listening attentively. Common 相槌
are うん, はい, and そうですか, which are similar to when English
speakers say, “Right,” “Really?” or “Is that so?” to show they’re
listening.

相槌 can also take the form of the listener repeating back what
they just heard in the form of a question, with んですか added at
the end. Because it’s technically a question, it might seem like the
listener is seeking confirmation or expressing surprise. However,
the listener is simply showing that they’re paying attention and
comprehend what was spoken.

Example 6

 Person A :「おれは今度の X JAPAN のコンサートに行く

よ！」

o “I’m going to the next X JAPAN concert!”

 Person B :「えっ！先輩行くんですか？！じゃあ私も行こう
かな！」

o “Wow! You’re going? Then maybe I’ll go, too!

 んです can also be added at the end of a

statement that paraphrases what the other
person has said. Again, it’s signaling that you
understood.

Example 7

 (During a break at work)

 Person A : 「B さん休憩時間ですよ！いっしょにお昼ご飯
食べよ！」

o “B-san, it’s break time! Let’s go get lunch.”

  Person B : 「ごめん。これを早く終わらせないといけない
からもう少しするよ。」

o “Sorry. I have to finish this, so I’m going to do a little

more.”
 Person A : 「えっ働くんだ！？うん。分かった。」

o “What, you’re working!? Okay, I got it.”

Example 8

 Person A : 「じゃあまたね！」
o “See you later!”
 Person B : 「え〜もう行くんだあ、、、。寂しいなあ。」
o “You’re leaving already…! I’ll be lonely.”

Example 9

 Person A : 「白夜行もう一回観よ！」
o “I’m going to watch White Night Train one more time!”
 Person B : 「また観るんだ。。。」

o “You’re watching it again…?!”

3. 先触れ、前置き：To preface or forewarn

んです can be used at the end of an opening statement to indicate

that you’re going to immediately follow it with an announcement,
news, an explanation, or the main point, etc. This use of んです is
usually followed by the particle が . When んですが occurs in the
middle of a sentence, it’s a polite way to prepare the listener for
what you really want to say or ask. (In casual speech, it takes the
form of んだけど.）

Example 10

 「〜さんはとても日本語がお上手なんですが、どこで勉強
しましたか？」
 “~san, you’re quite good at Japanese, so where did you
study?”

Example 11

 Student:「先生、ちょっとお話があるんですが、今よろしい
ですか？」

o “Sensei, I have something to tell you. Is this a good

time?”
 Teacher:「なんですか？」

o “What is it?”
 Student:「実は来年帰国することに決めました。」

o “The thing is, I’ve decided to return to my own country

next year.”

Example 12

 (Before asking a question)

 「ちょっと個人的なことで、恐縮なんですが、今ご相談さ
せていただいてもよろしいでしょうか？」
 “This is somewhat personal so I apologize in advance, but is
it alright to discuss something with you now?”.
4. 要求／願望（しばしば要求や願望が間接的に提示
されることもあり）: Requests / Desires (sometimes
expressed indirectly)

Related to #4, sometimes「んですが、～」 is spoken after the

person says what they want and before they ask a related
question. To make the request more polite, のですが can be used
like this:「(desire) のですが、 (question)」。

Example 13

 Person A : 「B さん、このレストランに行きたいのですが、
どうですか？」

o “B-san, I’d like to go to this restaurant. What do you

think?”
 Person B : 「いいですよ。」

o “That’s fine.”

Sometimes speakers omit the question after saying んですが, but

the listener usually understands the implied question, as in the
example below.

Example 14

(At a summer festival)

 Child (outside a candy apple cart, looking at the candy

apples): 「お母さん！お母さん！これ食べたいんだけど！」
（買ってくれない？）
 “Mom, mom! I want to eat this!” (Implied: So will you buy it
for me?)
  Mother : 「ダメ！」

o “No!”

The child’s sentence trails off after 食べたいんだけど (“I want to

eat this!”), but the mother understands what’s been omitted from
the sentence--“So will you buy it for me?”--and responds to the
question implied by the child. Of course, some listeners might be
impatient and prefer the speaker to make the request outright. For
example, a different mother might say, 「だから何？」 (“And…?
So what?”) to make the child directly express what he or she
wants.

The set phrase といいんですが is often used to signal what the

person wants to happen, as seen below. Sometimes this usage is
translated as “I hope…”

Example 15

 「明日はデートがあって、雨が降らないといいんだけど、
大丈夫かなあ。」
 “I have a date tomorrow. I hope it doesn’t rain. I wonder if it
will be okay.”

Japan is also a high-context culture, so a lot of meaning and

information is communicated indirectly. You have to pay attention
to the surrounding context to understand what’s been omitted.
The following two examples both involve using ～といいんですが
in the context of passing an exam, but for different reasons:
humility versus. uncertainty. The listener has to pay attention to
the context, the speaker’s intonation, and his or her knowledge of
the speaker to understand why the speaker trailed off.

Example 16
  Person A : 「今回の試験ちょっと難しかったね。」

o “This exam was a little difficult, right?”

 Person B : 「そうだね。試験に合格するといいんだけ
ど、、、。」（でもダメかも。)

o “Yeah. It’d be good if I passed, but…” (Implied: Maybe

I did badly.)
 Person A : 「でも、B さんは頭が良いから絶対大丈夫だ
よ。」

o “But, you’re smart so I’m sure you did fine.”

In this situation, there is a high probability that Person B is being

humble. Person A recognizes this because he or she is paying
attention to the context.

Example 17

 Person A : 「〜さん、今度 JLPTN5 のテストだね。」

o “~san, after this is the JLPT N5 test, right?”

 Person B : 「そうです。テストに受かるといいんです
が、、、。」（でも、たぶん受からないと思います）

o “That’s right. It’d be good if I pass the test, but…”

(Implied: I think I might not pass.)
 Person A : 「どうしたの？自信がないの？」

o “What’s wrong? You’re not confident?”

 Person B : 「はい。あまり自信がありません。」

o “Yes. I don’t have much confidence.”

This situation is similar, but this time Person B is using といいん
ですが from a lack of confidence, not from humility. (As a quick
note, notice that Person A’s use of 「...の？」 in this conversation
matches usage #1: Explanation).

To understand what a sentence ending in といいんですが is

signaling, you must pay attention to the context. In this final
example, it’s not signaling humility, uncertainty, or an implied
desire. Instead, the exact same phrase has the function described
in the previous section (#3: To Preface), and it can be translated
simply to mean “but...”

Example 18

 Person A : 「試験はどうだったんだ？」
o “How was the test?”
 Person B : 「まあまあでした。」

o “It was okay.”

 Person A : 「受かるといいな。」

o “It’d be good if you passed.” (i.e., “I hope you passed.”)

 Person B : 「受かるといいんですが、このテストはそんな
に重要ではないのであまり気にしていません。」
o “It’d be good if I passed but, this test isn’t very
important so I don’t care that much.”
 Person A : 「そうか。」
o “Oh, I see.”

5. 命令：Commands

In some situations, んだ is added to the end of a verb’s dictionary

form to become a strong command to do that action. This is
masculine speech, so women usually don’t use this. It’s also a
command, not a polite request, so be careful when using んだ in
this way.

Example 19

 「わかったな。分かったらさっさと働くんだ。」
 “You understand, right? If you understand, then start
working right away.”

In this example, 働くんだ is a direct order to another person to

work, much like the conjugation 働け (“go work!”). For comparison,
the て form, like 働いてください (polite) or 働いて (casual) is
used when you’re requesting someone to do something, not
ordering them to do it.

6. 強調：Emphasis

んだ can be used to emphasize something that you think the other

person should already know.

Example 20

 「何回言ったら分かるんだ！？僕は行きたくないんだ。」
 “How many times do I have to say it before you
understand?!? I don’t want to go!”

7. 言い換え： “To put it another way…”

After expressing something, you can put んです at the end of a
second statement that either paraphrases or elaborates on the
first one.

Example 21

 「昨日離婚しました。ということは、わたしは今日から自
由なのです！」
 “I got divorced yesterday. That means that from today on,
I’m free!”

Example 22

(While standing in front of a closed shop)

 「今日、日曜日ってことはお店休みなんだあ。せっかく来
たのに」
 “It’s Sunday so that means the shop is closed today… And
after I came all the way here!”

Example 23

 Person A : 「あの人、左薬指に指輪をしてるってことは結
婚してるんだね。」
o “As for the ring on that person’s left finger--they’re
married, right?”
 Person B : 「本当だね。」

o “That’s right.”
8. 一方的な提示（聞き手に話しかける／聞き手に話
しかけるようなスタイル）：When making a
statement, to indicate that you’re communicating to
the listener(s)

When a person is making a one-sided statement, such as a

lecture, presentation, or announcement to other people, んです is
often added to the end of sentences to indicate that you’re
addressing the listeners.

Example 24

 「突然だけど、おれ、今度結婚するんだ。」
 “This is sudden but, I’m getting married soon.”

**CAUTION**

Listen up, Japanese learners!

The reason it is so important to use んです correctly is because it

can convey certain social nuances. Because んです often implies
an explanation or expectation (see usage #1), a simple sentence
can become rude when んです is added inappropriately.

For example, consider this (incorrect!) expression:

 「本を貸してくれないんですか？」
The speaker of this sentence is trying to say “Could you lend me a
book?”, but what it actually sounds like is “Why won’t you lend me
a book?” Adding んです when making this request implies that
you want an explanation because you expect the listener to say
no.

A common mistake by learners is to add んです to the wrong

types of questions. It indicates that you already have a belief or
expectation about the other person, so the question becomes a bit
rude. For example, if you want to ask what everyone’s opinion is,
you should say:

 「皆さん、何か意見はありませんか？」

However, imagine a learner who inappropriately adds んです , as

shown below.

 「何か意見はないんですか？」

This question, “Don’t you have an opinion?”, has the tone of

demanding an explanation. It sounds like you think people either
don’t have an opinion, or you’re wondering why they aren’t saying
anything. (Here, んです adds the nuance of explanation or
expectation, so when you add it after asking people if they have
an opinion, it becomes something like, “Why don’t you have an
opinion?” Like this: 「どうして何も意見を言わないのか？」)

One way to think of this is to watch what inserting んです does

here:

 「重そうなカバンですね。旅行に行くんですか？」
 “That bags looks heavy. Are you going on a trip?
By adding んです at the end, you’re letting the listener know that
you think they’re going on a trip, and you want them to confirm
your assumption. However, in different situations, adding んです
at the end of certain questions might inadvertently become rude
because of the added nuance (e.g., assumptions, demanding an
explanation). It isn’t rude to assume that someone with a heavy-
looking bag is going on a trip, so it’s appropriate to use んです in
this sentence.

When you’re talking or writing to another person, the incorrect

addition of んです can create the feeling of a one-sided statement
(usage #8). A common mistake made by Japanese learners is to
put んです at the end of a request, with the intention of usage #4
but it accidentally adopts the nuance of #8 instead. For example,
consider a student who is writing to a potential italki teacher for
the first time and wants to request conversation practice. Below
are two incorrect(i.e., accidentally rude) sentences with んです,
followed by the correct, polite version.

Incorrect

 「 はじめまして、私の名前は〜です。会話練習したいんで
す。ありがとう。」
 “Nice to meet you. My name is ~. (I’m telling you) I’d like to
do conversation practice. Thanks.”
 「 はじめまして、私の名前は〜です。会話練習したいと思
っているんです。ありがとう。」
 “Nice to meet you. My name is ~. (I’m telling you) I think I’d
like to do conversation practice. Thanks.”

Correct
  「 はじめまして。私の名前は〜です。会話の練習をしたい
と思っています。よろしくお願いします。」
 “Nice to meet you. My name is ~. I think I’d like to do
conversation practice. Thank you in advance.”

In the first two sentences, the student is trying to frame it as a

request, but this particular sentence structure sounds like a one-
sided address (“I’m telling you…”). Unfortunately, this becomes a
bit rude. If this sentence occurred in the middle of a conversation
after the student was asked a question (e.g., usage #1), then it
might be appropriate. However, in this particular context it adopts
a very different nuance.

The nuance created by using んです depends on the context and

the content of the conversation, so it is important to be careful
when using it.