Grammar– category –
Japanese grammar for English speakers. Particles, verb conjugation, sentence patterns, conditionals, and nuanced expressions organized by JLPT level N5 to N1. Browse by level: N4/N5, N2/N3, N1/N2. By topic: Particles, Verb Conjugation, Conditionals, Sentence Patterns. Full overview at the Japanese Grammar Hub.
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Japanese Noun Modification: How Relative Clauses and Descriptive Phrases Work
In English, you describe a noun by adding information after it: "the person who ate sushi," "the movie that I watched," "the bag I bought in Tokyo." Japanese works the opposite way — every modifier, no matter how long, goes before the no... -
Ageru, Morau, Kureru: The Complete Guide to Japanese Giving and Receiving Verbs
Imagine you want to say "My friend gave me a book" in Japanese. You look up the word for "give" and find あげる. So you say: 私は友達に本をあげた — and every Japanese person in the room quietly winces. You just said you gave your friend ... -
Expressing Reason in Japanese: 〜から, 〜ので, 〜ため, and 〜て
Picture this: your Japanese teacher asks why you didn't finish your homework, and you want to say "because I was busy." Simple enough — but in Japanese you have several options: から, ので, ため, and even the humble 〜て form. Pick the w... -
Japanese Frequency Expressions: How to Say Always, Sometimes, and Never
How often do you study Japanese? Do you always review vocabulary before bed, or only sometimes? Can you say that in Japanese yet? Frequency expressions — words like "always," "often," "sometimes," "rarely," and "never" — are among the mo... -
Japanese Humble Form (謙譲語 Kenjōgo): How to Speak Politely About Your Own Actions
Picture this: you've just been handed a business card at your first meeting with a Japanese client. You want to say "I will come to your office on Monday" — but you're not sure whether to use 行きます or something more formal. If you've ... -
Asking Permission in Japanese
窓を開けてもいいですか。(Mado o akete mo ii desu ka.) — May I open the window? どうぞ、かまいませんよ。(Douzo, kamaimasen yo.) — Please go ahead, I don't mind at all. ### Refusing Permission Politely Saying "no" in Japanese requires care... -
Expressing Ability in Japanese
Imagine your Japanese tutor asks: "Can you read kanji?" You know the answer — but do you know how to say it in Japanese? There are actually three main ways to express ability in Japanese, and each one carries slightly different nuance. M... -
Japanese Conjunctions
Picture this: you are chatting with a Japanese friend and you want to say "I studied hard. But I failed the exam." You know the two sentences in Japanese — but how do you connect them? That small linking word, the conjunction, is doing a... -
Japanese Na-Adjectives Complete Guide
You open your Japanese textbook and learn that 好き（すき）means "like" and 有名（ゆうめい）means "famous." Then you try to use them in a sentence — and everything goes wrong. You write 有名い instead of 有名な, or you forget to add な b... -
Expressing Want in Japanese
Picture this: you're in a Japanese convenience store and you want to ask for a bag. You try to say something, but suddenly you freeze — do you use ほしい or たい? And what if you want someone else to do something for you? Japanese has th...
