Nihongo Grammer

Usually, the basic structure of Japanese sentences is considered to be SOV –

subject object verb
subject-object-verb (eg. I sushi eat ).

Particals

Japanese sentences are structured around grammatical markers called

‘particles’. Each particle indicates how the word before it relates to other words
in the sentence, usually to the verb. The verb appears last, but the order of the
other words can vary because it is the particles, not word order, that tell us
who did what.

For example, a basic sentence might have a topic (which is often the same as the
subject) followed by the particle ‘wa’, then an object with the particle ‘wo’, and
finally the verb. This basic word ordering is why Japanese is often considered
an SOV language, but as long as the right particles are used with the right
words, the actual order of the words can be changed.

Basic “desu” sentences

the special verb “desu” (pronounced “dess”), is effectively equivalent to the
English verb “be” (am, are, is).
Sentences using “desu” usually follow this basic structure:
[topic] wa … (something that describes the topic) … desu
Here are a few simple examples:
I am a person.
watashi wa hito desu.
わたし は ひと です。
わたし ひと
私 は 人 です。
This is a car.
kore wa kuruma desu.
これ は くるま です。
 くるま
これは 車 です。
The car is red.
kuruma wa akai desu.
くるま は あか いです。
くるま あか
車 は 赤 いです。
[The first step to understanding this structure is knowing what “wa” is.
“Wa” is what is known as a particle. Particles are like markers that identify what
role each word or phrase plays within a sentence.
The particle “wa” tells us that the word or phrase before it is the topic of
that sentence.
The topic is basically the thing that is being talked about in that sentence, and
usually appears near the beginning.
Particles like “wa” do not exist in English, but they are the backbone of
Japanese grammar.
The main verb comes at the end of the sentence
First, let’s take another look at the first two sentences above. Text with the same
formatting has the same meaning.
I am a person.
watashi wa hito desu.
わたし は ひと です 。
わたし ひと
私 は 人 です 。
This is a car.
kore wa kuruma desu.
これ は くるま です 。
くるま
これは 車 です 。
First of all, we can see that “wa” has no English equivalent. This is because its
entire purpose is to show that “watashi” or “kore” is the topic of these
sentences.
Particles are like markers that tell us the role each word plays in a
sentence.
Taro saw Noriko.
Tarō wa Noriko wo mimashita.
たろう は のりこ を みました。
たろう のりこ み
太郎 は 紀子 を 見ました。
This sentence has two particles:

 “wa”, which tells us who we are talking about

 “wo”, which tells us what they saw

 wa defines the ‘topic’ of a sentence, which is usually the person or

thing that performed the main action being described
 wo, pronounced “o”, defines to whom or to what that action was done,
which is known as the ‘object’ of the verb
Let’s start by considering some basic information that relates directly to the
action itself, such as:

 When (more precisely) the action takes place

 Where the action takes place
 The destination of the action
 The origin of the action
 The means by which the action is done

Taro saw Noriko at the library.

Tarō wa Noriko wo toshokan de mimashita.
たろう は のりこ を としょかん で みました。
たろう のりこ としょかん み
太郎 は 紀子 を 図書館 で 見ました。
Tarō wa toshokan de Noriko wo mimashita.
たろう は としょかん で のりこ を みました。
たろう としょかん のりこ み
太郎 は 図書館 で 紀子 を 見ました。
Suki, kirai and hoshī
Coming from English, “suki” (like), “kirai” (hate) and “hoshī” (want) probably
take some getting used to because they are adjectives, while their English
equivalents are verbs. They are also often used in sentences that include
both “wa” and “ga”, so let’s see how we can apply the context bubble to make
better sense of them.
Since they are adjectives, these words all work in exactly the same way
as “nagai” did in our previous example. Let’s take a look:
I like sushi.
watashi wa sushi ga suki desu.
わたし は すし が すき です。
わたし す
私 はすしが 好きです。
If we break this down as we did before, we can see that the same rules apply.
What is the action? The adjective/verb combination “suki desu”, which roughly
means “being liked”.
Who or what is performing that action? The word or phrase before “ga”, which
is “sushi”.
Our sentence so far is therefore:
Sushi is liked.
sushi ga suki desu.
すし が すき です。
す
すしが 好きです。

We can do exactly the same thing with “kirai”, “hoshī”, and other similar words.
I hate natto.
watashi wa nattō ga kirai desu.
わたし は なっとう が きらい です。
わたし なっとう きら
私 は 納豆 が 嫌 いです。
I want a new computer.
watashi wa atarashī pasokon ga hoshī desu.
わたし は あたらしい パソコン が ほしい です。
わたし あたら ほ
私 は 新 しいパソコンが 欲しいです。

Bonus: The ~tai form of verbs

Verbs with the ~tai ending, such as “tabetai”, also work the same way as these
adjectives because that’s exactly what they are. Let’s see an example:
I want to eat sushi.
watashi wa sushi ga tabetai desu.
わたし は すし が たべたい です。
わたし た
私 はすしが 食べたいです。
Arimasu and imasu
The verbs “arimasu” and “imasu” can also be a little tricky, as they share
similarities with “desu” as well as all other verbs. We can, however, apply all of
the principles we’ve covered so far in the same way.
Let’s start by looking at an example where “arimasu” is used just like any other
verb that isn’t “desu”:
Her bag is in the classroom.
kanojo no kaban wa kyōshitsu ni arimasu
かのじょ の カバン は きょうしつ に あります。
かのじょ きょうしつ
彼女 のカバンは 教室 にあります
The first thing we need to make absolutely clear – just to be on the safe side – is that even though the English translation here uses the verb “is” or “to be”, it has a

distinctly different meaning to when “desu” was used.

While “desu” is essentially used to equate two things as being the same (A = B), “arimasu” describes existence (as does “imasu”).

However, “arimasu” and “imasu” are also sometimes used in sentences that include both “wa” and “ga”, and this is where it can get confusing.

Fortunately, our same rules apply – “wa” defines/clarifies the context bubble, and “ga” defines the thing that is performing the act of “being” (or, if it’s easier,

“existing”).

For example:

I have an older sister.

watashi wa ane ga imasu.

わたし は あね が います。
わたし あね
私 は 姉 がいます。

First, we clarify that “watashi” is in the context bubble. Then, in that context, we describe the older sister as being/existing.
Here’s another example:

He doesn’t have any money.

kare wa okane ga arimasen.

かれ は おかね が ありません。
かれ かね
彼 はお 金 がありません。

As a side note, notice how the way we express these ideas in English is with the word “have”, not “be” or “exist”. This is further evidence of the indirect nature of the

Japanese language. In Japanese, I don’t own my sister, just as “he” doesn’t own money. My sister and money exist on their own; they just so happen to do so in a way

that relates to me and him, respectively.

This reflects a broader cultural and linguistic difference that actually shapes the way we view the world. Generally:

 In English, people do and own things.

 In Japanese, things happen and exist.

Here are the main lessons I hope you can take from this article:

 Particles like “ga”, “wo” and “ni” define how certain things relate to the action, while “wa” tells us what is being talked about in the sentence

 There are two main things that determine the meaning of what we communicate – context, and new/important information

 Marking something as the subject using “ga” classifies it as new/important information, giving it emphasis

 “wa” allows us to redefine or clarify some or all of the context before stating new/important information

 “wa” shifts the emphasis of the sentence away from the word or phrase it is marking, and onto the information the follows

 Using our three basic rules, we can then create our sentence to be any of the following:

 Tarō wa nichiyōbi ni Noriko wo eki de mimashita.

 たろう は にちようび に のりこ を えき で みました。

たろう にちようび のりこ えき み
 太郎 は 日曜日 に 紀子 を 駅 で 見ました。

 Tarō wa nichiyōbi ni eki de Noriko wo mimashita.

 たろう は にちようび に えき で のりこ を みました。

たろう にちようび えき のりこ み
 太郎 は 日曜日 に 駅 で 紀子 を 見ました。

 Tarō wa Noriko wo nichiyōbi ni eki de mimashita.

 たろう は のりこ を にちようび に えき で みました。

たろう のりこ にちようび えき み
 太郎 は 紀子 を 日曜日 に 駅 で 見ました。

 Again, some orderings are more natural than others. For example, time phrases usually appear near the beginning of the sentence, so in most cases,

the third option above is less preferable. Time phrases are also unique in that they often appear even before the topic, like so:

 [time phrase] + [topic] wa … (other information) … [verb]

An important point about the diagrams above are that they show the relationship between certain pieces of information and the main verb. This is because each of

them relates directly to the action. For example:

 “nichiyōbi ni” defines when the action takes places

 “eki de” defines where the action takes place

 “toshokan ni” defines the destination of the action

We can, however, add other information that doesn’t relate directly to the verb. Instead it relates specifically to one of the individual elements in the sentence.

The simplest example of this is adjectives.

In Japanese, adjectives are used in much the same way as they are in English – immediately before the noun they describe. (This is in addition to their use in simple

sentences where the main verb is “desu”, such as “kuruma wa akai desu”).

Let’s take a shorter version of our sentence from earlier…

Taro went to the library by car.

Tarō wa kuruma de toshokan ni ikimashita.

たろう は くるま で としょかん に い きました。

たろう くるま としょかん い
太郎 は 車 で 図書館 に 行きました。

…and change it to specify that the car was blue:

Taro went to the library in a blue car

Tarō wa aoi kuruma de toshokan ni ikimashita.

たろう は あおい くるま で としょかん に いきました。

たろう あお くるま としょかん い
太郎 は 青 い 車 で 図書館 に 行きました。

(Note that in English, “by” changes to “in”, but the meaning is essentially the same).

What we’re essentially doing is expanding the individual element, “kuruma”, to add more detail. In this case, the ‘means of transport’ has changed

from “kuruma” to “aoi kuruma”. When we do this, “aoi kuruma” as a whole should be marked by “de”, since “a blue car” is the means of transport, not just “a car”.

This can be turned into the following:

Taro went to the library in my car.

Tarō wa watashi no kuruma de toshokan ni ikimashita.

たろう は わたし の くるま で としょかん に い きました。

たろう わたし くるま としょかん い
太郎 は 私 の 車 で 図書館 に 行きました

It’s important to note that even though “no” is a particle, it cannot be moved around freely like the other particles we’ve looked at. This is because it is part of a noun

phrase, and noun phrases cannot be separated. Doing so would be like separating “my” from “car”. The result might be something like this:

Taro went to my library by car.

Tarō wa kuruma de watashi no toshokan ni ikimashita.

たろう は くるま で わたし の としょかん に いきました。

たろう くるま わたし としょかん い
太郎 は 車 で 私 の 図書館 に 行きました。

If we want to change the word order, we can, but we need to move the whole noun phrase “watashi no kuruma”, and the associated particle “de”, together as a single

block. Here’s one way we could do this:

Taro went to the library in my car.

Tarō wa toshokan ni watashi no kuruma de ikimashita.

たろう は としょかん に わたし の くるま で いきました。

たろう としょかん わたし くるま い
太郎 は 図書館 に 私 の 車 で 行きました。

This is true for any noun in any sentence. That is, any noun can be expanded into a more detailed noun phrase. The resulting noun phrase can then be used in the same

way as the original noun, no matter what role that noun has in the sentence. It just has to be kept together as a single block.

For example, the destination could be changed from “the library” to “the university library”:

Taro went to the university library by car.

Tarō wa kuruma de daigaku no toshokan ni ikimashita.

たろう は くるま で だいがく の としょかん に いきました。

たろう くるま だいがく としょかん い
太郎 は 車 で 大学 の 図書館 に 行きました。