Kolintogba

Japanese Grammar

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I said grammar-centric language teaching doesn’t work in “how to learn foreign language“, and you should learn language naturally through learning phrases actually spoken by native speakers. While I stand by the statement, sometimes it helps to clarify specific grammatical points, especially because Japanese and English (or any other language for that matter) are quite different.

Instead of going through pedantic (and usually useless) detailed explanations of Japanese grammar like many others have already done, I focus on clarifying the differences and correspondences between English and Japanese to make things easier for English speakers. I also focus on the differences between similar concepts within Japanese grammar so that you learn not only what is correct, but what is wrong and why too, and it will be clear to you when to use what how in real-life applications.

This section is under development and I will be adding more posts soon. Please support so that I can keep developing the website.

  • Adverbs and adverbializing

    The concept of adverb in Japanese is not as clear as English. 形容動詞 can become an adverb through conjugation, and 名詞 too can be used as an adverb with some particles […]

  • Aux verb – たい・たがる

    The aux verbs たい and たがる both express “to want”, but they are not as straightforward to use as “want” […]

  • Auxiliary verbs (of nightmare)

    Japanese extensively uses very short auxiliary verbs that are conjugated and directly connected to the main verb. As the result, sentences often become nightmarishly complex and mouthful. On top of that you can throw in a few particles between aux verbs to further change the nuances subtly. Or one small particle can change the contexts…

  • Can-do verbs

    [Verb 未然形 + aux verbs れる/られる] form “can do, eat, fly, sleep, etc.” in Japanese. However verbs with 五段活用 usually use abbreviated forms instead […]

  • Colloquial abbreviations/alterations

    Here is a list of common colloquial abbreviations/alterations:

  • Conjugations

    Conjugation tables for 動詞, 形容詞, 形容動詞, 助動詞

  • Counting in Japanese

    Japanese, along with Chinese and Korean, uses counting suffixes when counting things […]

  • Do for me

    Japanese extensively uses expressions “do for me” (along with “do for somebody“). The both of the below examples can be translated “he helped me” in English, but while the first one is an emotionless statement that simply states the fact, the second one is from your personal and emotional perspective. “Do for me” is used…

  • Do for somebody

    “Do for somebody” is the opposite side of “do for me“, and they are both used extensively in Japanese (and Korean). “Do for somebody” is used when you do something solely for the benefit of somebody else: There are multiple “do for somebody” with different speech levels. Since やる、上げる can be very patronizing, they are…

  • Even if

    Unlike in English, “even if” statements in Japanese take a completely different construction from regular “if” statements. Just like in “if” statements, particles are what make “even if” statements in Japanese […]

  • Even though

    There are multiple “even though” in Japanese, each with slightly different nuances.

  • Helping verb – ある

    ある as a regular verb means “to be”, “to exist”. Basically it still means the same thing when it is used as a helping verb, but it adds an extra dimension. ある implies that something is in a certain state, because you actively put it in that state. ある can be used to mean “to…

  • Helping verb – しまう

    The verb しまう mainly means to put away, store away when used alone. However when it is used as a “helping verb” it adds a sense of something ending in an unintended, unexpected, often undesirable, regrettable way […]

  • Helping verb – 居る

    居る (いる) is ”to be”, “to exist” as a stand-alone verb, but also it forms continuous/progressive tense when combined another verb as [verb 連用形 + て + いる]. The same [verb 連用形 + て + いる] also serves as a participle (verb adjective). Note both いる and ある mean “to be in the state of”,…

  • Helping verb – 来る

    来る is used as a helping verb, aside from its main meaning of “to come”. The below usages are all extremely common and can be the difference between your Japanese sounds natural or not […]

  • Helping verb – 置く

    置く (おく) primarily means “to put”, but when combined with another verb as a helping verb, it serves a variety of additional meanings. As you will see in the below examples, the usages of 置く are pretty subtle and in most of the cases you can say the same things without using it. However native…

  • Helping verb – 見る

    見る is frequently used as “to try”, just as “do something and see how it goes” in English, especially in conversation […]

  • If

    Even though adverb もし translates to ”if” in English, and it is usually at the beginning of a sentence just like English “if”, it is not a must in “if” statements. Instead the particles and aux verbs are what really make “if” statements in Japanese. In the below examples もし is optional, and it is…

  • In order to

    格助詞に is used for “in order to”, when you go and/or come in order to do something: When come and go are not involved and “in order to” is in a sub-clause 格助詞の + に can be used. In writing and formal speeches, 為(ため) is usually used.

  • Nominalizing adjectives

    形容詞 (adjectives) can be made into nouns by swapping the end い with さ […]