The Basic Building Blocks

Word Order Pattern

Japanese consistently follows Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) pattern.

Note: Verbs do not change form based on the subject (I/you/he/she/they) - they only change based on politeness level and tense:

• Casual: 食べる (taberu) - “eat”
• Polite: 食べます (tabemasu) - “eat”
• Past Casual: 食べた (tabeta) - “ate”
• Past Polite: 食べました (tabemashita) - “ate”

Basic Particles

Note: へ is often replaceable with に in everyday speech. を is written as を but pronounced “o”.

は vs が Usage

Note: は for general statements/topics, が for emphasis or new information.

Question Formation

Note: Both methods can be combined. Rising intonation is more casual.

Common Sentence Patterns

Describing State

Note: Using ある for living things (猫があります) is a common mistake.

Politeness Levels

Adjective Types

い-Adjectives

な-Adjectives

Note: な-adjectives need な when modifying nouns: 静かな部屋 (quiet room)

Verb Forms

Present/Future Tense

Note: Present tense can also indicate future actions depending on context.

Past Tense

Ongoing States (~ている)

Note: Polite form changes ている to ています.

Te-form

Te-form Uses

Te-form Formation

Irregular Cases:

• する → して
• 来る → きて
• Some る verbs (切る → 切って)

Potential Form

Note: Potential form indicates ability to do something. Objects often marked with が instead of を.

Passive Form (られる)

Usage Types:

1. Direct passive: 財布が盗まれた (My wallet was stolen)
2. Suffering passive: 雨に降られた (Was affected by rain - implies inconvenience)

Causative Form (させる)

Note: Can combine with てもらう for permission: 食べさせてもらう (be allowed to eat)

Note 2: Common in business contexts: お待たせしました (Sorry to have kept you waiting)

Essential Grammar Patterns

Making Requests

Expressing Reasons

Counter Reference

Common Mistakes

Sentence and Grammar Structure with Examples