# Japanese/Grammar

## Word order

Japanese is a SOV
(Subject-Object-Verb) language. English is typically
SVO (Subject-Verb-Object). In
Japanese, the verb *always* appears at the end of clauses and sentences.
Japanese parts of speech are usually marked with words called
\"particles\" that follow the word they modify. These particles identify
the word\'s or phrase\'s function in the sentence---for example, topic,
subject, direct/indirect object, location of action, etc.

Japanese is flexible in terms of word-order due to use of particles.
Sentences, however, generally have the following structure:

:   **Sentence Topic, Time, Location, Subject, Indirect Object, Direct
    Object, Verb.**

## Context sensitivity

Japanese is highly *context-sensitive*. Words or phrases obvious to both
the speaker and listener are often omitted. It could be considered a
\"minimalist\" language. For example, the statement: \"I\'m going to
watch a movie.\" could be translated as 「映画を見る。」 (*eiga o
miru.*); literally, \"Movie watch.\" \[I\] is implied, as it is the
speaker who is making the statement. Depending on the context, however,
this phrase could also be translated as \"s/he is going to watch a
movie\", \"we will watch a movie\", etc.

Japanese has many levels of formality and depends not only on what is
said, but also on who is saying it and to whom. The language is socially
striated to the point that different forms of speech exist for men and
women.

## Parts of speech

Japanese parts of speech, although no more complicated than those of
other languages, do not fit well into typical labels such as verb, noun,
and adjective. Keep that in mind over the course of your studies.

### Nominals

#### Nouns

Nouns in Japanese are fairly immutable. They do not take definite or
indefinite articles, gender, and do not change for number.

Although there is no true plural in Japanese, a small number of nouns
may take one of several collective suffixes.

:   *Tanaka-san (Mr. Tanaka), Tanaka-san-tachi (Mr. Tanaka and his
    group)*

Certain nouns may take a prefix in polite
speech. Most often, native Japanese
words (和語) are preceded by \"o-\" (\"お\"), and Sino-Japanese words
(漢語) are preceded with \"go-\" (\"ご\"). Both are readings of the
kanji \"御\". Though primarily used for adding politeness or distance,
some words more commonly appear with the prefix than others, and in some
cases, never appear without it (e.g., お茶 \[*ocha*\], \"green tea\").

Many nouns may be converted into verbs simply by affixing 「する」
(*suru*) to the end.

:   *\"benkyō\" () is a noun
    meaning \"study/studies\" while \"benkyō-suru\"
    () is the verb \"to
    study\".*

Nouns may also function as adjectives when the
particle の (*no*) or な (\"na\") is appended.

:   *\"ki\" (木) means \"wood\" with \"ki no tatemono\"
    (の)
    meaning \"wooden building\".*

#### Pronouns

Unlike many other languages, Japanese has no true pronouns; since words
that are clear from context are usually elided, there is less need for
them. In general, natural-sounding Japanese tends to avoid the use of
nouns that refer to people except when explicitly needed. This is often
a point of confusion for beginners. Pronominals are not grammatically
distinct from ordinary nominals: notably, they may take adjectives,
which pronouns cannot.

:   *\"watashi\", \"boku\", \"ore\", \"watakushi\" all mean \"I\"; and
    \"anata\", \"kimi\" mean \"you\"*

#### Na-adjectives

A Na-adjective is a nominal that often precedes a copula (such as
\'na\'). Due to the common occurrence of na-adjectives, many Japanese
dictionaries write nominals with the \'na\' included. Na-adjectives are
generally adjectival in meaning, as most cannot exist in context without
a previously denoted subject; however, one might simply say \"げんき　な
(genki na)\" to describe a subject that is understood within the current
conversation\'s context (this situation is limited to casual or somewhat
informal conversation; using full sentences is almost always necessary
when speaking to anyone of higher status). Examples of na-adjectives:
\"heta na:\" unskilled, bad at; \"genki na:\" healthy, energetic;
\"orijinaru na:\" original

### Verbals

#### Verbs

Verbs are where most of the action in Japanese sentences takes place.
They are the primary means for controlling levels of politeness in
speech,...

Japanese verbs inflect directly for tense, negation, mood, aspect,
politeness, and honorific speech.

Unlike English, conjugation of Japanese verbs is extremely regular, with
few exceptions. The system takes some getting used to, but once the
kana have been learned, a uniform pattern
emerges. Verbs are placed into one of three groups: 五段 (*godan*, aka
Type I), 一段 (*ichidan*, aka Type II), and 不規則 (*fukisoku*,
irregular).

Only two verbs are generally considered irregular in the modern
language, 来る (*kuru*, to come) and する (*suru*, to do). Despite being
such, even they are somewhat regular in their irregularity.

#### I-adjectives

These inflect for tense, politeness, and honorific speech as well
(although not aspect or mood, as they are all stative verbs); an -i
adjective will always end in -ai, -ī, -ui, or -oi. (Note that there are
also stative -u verbs.)

:   \'\'\"utsukushī\": beautiful; \"ī\": good; \"sugoi\": amazing;
    \"ureshī\": happy

#### The copula

Although the copula is not strictly a verb, most of its forms derive
from \"de aru\", but inflects somewhat irregularly. It retains an
\"attributive form\", na, used to modify the noun it stands before:
however, this form is almost exclusively used after na-adjectives.

### Other

**Particles**: Also called **postpositions** or *joshi*, particles show
the case of nouns in Japanese: that is, they mark nouns as being the
subject, object, indirect object, etc. (English typically uses word
order or prepositions for the same effect.) Particles follow the noun
they modify.

-   *wa* (**は**): topic
-   *ga* (**が**): subject
-   *o* (**を**): direct object
-   *no* (**の**): possession,
    apposition
-   *ni* (**に**): indirect object,
    direction \"to\", location of existence, etc.
-   *kara* (**から**): direction
    \"from\"
-   *made* (**まで**): \"until\",
    \"as far as\"
-   *de* (**で**): means, location
    of an action

Some particles are used after sentences instead:

-   *ka* (**か**): question marker
-   *yo* (**よ**): marker for
    giving new information or showing emphasis or certainty
-   *ne* (**ね**): marker for
    seeking agreement
-   *tte* (**って**): informal
    quotation marker

**Adverbs**: Adverbs typically modify the entire sentence, although most
Japanese quantifiers (including numbers) are actually adverbs, rather
than adjectives as in English.

-   *aikawarazu* as always;
-   *sukoshi* (**少し**) a little,
    few
-   *mō sugu* soon, before long;
-   *sō* thus, so

**Conjunctions**: Japanese conjunctions typically either apply to
nominals (like English \"except\") or to predicates (like English
\"when\"), not both (like English \"and\").

-   *mata wa* or (n.);
-   *soshite* (**そして**)
    and then, and also (pr.);
-   *ga* but (pr.)

**Interjections**: Common to every language.

-   *wā!* \"wow!\"
-   *are?* \"huh?\", \"wha?\"
-   *ē to* \"um, er\"
-   *anō* \"um\"

## Sentence examples

  -------
  遅い
  Osoi.
  late
  -------

*\[You\'re\] late.*

  -------- -----
  綺麗     だ
  Kirei    da.
  Pretty   is
  -------- -----

:   *\[It\] is pretty.*

  ------ --------- ------ -------
  これ   は        本     です
  Kore   wa        hon    desu.
  This   *topic*   book   is.
  ------ --------- ------ -------

:   *This is a book.*

  ---------- --------- ------------
  富士山     は        美しい
  Fuji-san   wa        utsukushī.
  Mt. Fuji   *topic*   beautiful
  ---------- --------- ------------

:   *Mt. Fuji is beautiful.*

  ------- --------- -------- ----------------- -------
  今日    は        あまり   寒くない          です
  Kyou    wa        amari    samuku-nai        desu.
  Today   *topic*   very     cold-NEG-POLITE   is
  ------- --------- -------- ----------------- -------

:   *It\'s not very cold today. / Today isn\'t very cold.*

  ----- ---------- ----------------
  海    を         見ました
  Umi   o          mimashita.
  Sea   *object*   look at-*past*
  ----- ---------- ----------------

:   *\[I\] gazed out at the ocean.*

  ---------- --------- ------- ---------------- ------------------
  お母さん   は        店      に               行きました
  Okāsan     wa        mise    ni               ikimashita.
  Mother     *topic*   store   *place/method*   went-PAST-POLITE
  ---------- --------- ------- ---------------- ------------------

:   \'\'\[Her\] mother went to the store.

  -------- ----------- ------------------
  夏       が          来ました
  Natsu    ga          kimashita.
  Summer   *subject*   come-PAST-POLITE
  -------- ----------- ------------------

:   *Summer has come.*


