Grammar
Practical guides on speaking, grammar, pronunciation, listening, and study planning, written for learners who want to use Japanese in real life.
Grammar · Page 6
Japanese に決まっている: Saying 'Of Course' with Strong Conviction
に決まっている presents a conclusion as obvious to the speaker.
4 min readJapanese 恐れがある: Reporting a Risk Without Saying It Will Happen
恐れがある flags a possible negative outcome in a formal, cautionary tone.
4 min readJapanese ずにはいられない: When You Cannot Help Doing It
ずにはいられない describes an action or reaction you cannot keep yourself from doing.
4 min readJapanese てたまらない: A Feeling Too Strong to Bear
てたまらない expresses a feeling or sensation that is almost unbearable in intensity.
4 min readJapanese ことはない: Reassuring Someone There Is No Need
ことはない tells someone an action is unnecessary, often to reassure them.
4 min readJapanese ものだ: General Truths, Old Habits, and Strong Feelings
ものだ can sound like a general truth, a remembered habit or a heartfelt reaction.
4 min readJapanese に越したことはない: The Safer or Better Choice
に越したことはない says an option is ideal or safer, without making it a strict rule.
4 min readJapanese を問わず: Eligibility Regardless of a Category
を問わず says a rule or opportunity applies without making a distinction by a named category.
4 min readJapanese Request Politeness Ladder: From Matte to Itadakemasen Ka
To make a Japanese request more polite, make it longer and less direct: matte becomes matte kureru?, then matte kudasai, matte kuremasen ka, matte moraemasen ka and matte itadakemasen ka, each step giving the listener more room to say no.
12 min readJapanese Time Words With and Without Ni: Getsuyōbi ni vs Ashita
Put ni after time words that name a fixed point, such as sanji ni, at three, or getsuyōbi ni, on Monday; leave it off words counted from today, such as ashita and raishū; with mornings, weekends and seasons, ni is optional.
12 min readJapanese Contrastive Wa: The Hidden But in Kōhī wa Nomimasu
Contrastive wa singles out one item and limits your statement to it, so kōhī wa nomimasu means coffee, at least, I drink, with an unspoken but about other drinks; the same wa appears in negatives, paired contrasts, ni wa and minimum amounts.
13 min readJapanese Ga Particle Uses: The Subject Marker From Basics to Clauses
The Japanese particle ga marks the subject by pointing at it: it identifies who or what in questions and answers, introduces things that exist or are noticed, as in oto ga suru, and marks the subject inside subordinate and relative clauses.
12 min readPractical guides
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