★Problems with Traditional Textbooks

  1. Core Issues

    • Goal of Traditional Textbooks: To quickly teach practical and polite Japanese, but they overlook the true logic of the language.
    • Main Problems:
      • Teaching Japanese from an English perspective, making it difficult to truly understand Japanese expressions.
      • Attempting to translate English phrases rather than teaching the Japanese grammatical system.
      • Ignoring kanji study, leaving learners unable to read and comprehend Japanese texts in practical situations.
      • Introducing honorifics too early without a solid foundation, causing confusion.
      • Emphasizing complete sentence expressions (e.g., "Hi, my name is Smith"), but in Japanese, much information is omitted through context.

  2. Solution: Learn Japanese with Japanese Logic

    • Core Idea: Approach Japanese from its own logic, not through English translation.
    • Methods:
      • Systematically introduce Japanese grammatical components to help learners build a solid foundation.
      • Gradually construct the grammatical system rather than jumping around to teach specific phrases.
      • Initial translations will be as literal as possible to help understand Japanese expressions, rather than using fluent English translations.
      • Learn the most basic but challenging parts first (e.g., verb conjugations) to make subsequent learning smoother.

  3. Learning Tips

    • Avoid Direct Translation

      • Do not try to translate from English to Japanese; instead, learn Japanese expressions directly.
      • Ask native speakers for correct expressions and understand the logic behind them.

    • Learn Through Examples

      • Language intuition is more important than rote memorization. Look at more examples and refer to grammar when in doubt.
      • Don’t stop just because you don’t understand at first. Comprehension will deepen with accumulation.

    • Expose Yourself to Real Japanese

      • Get plenty of Japanese input through manga, websites, forums, etc.
      • Practice speaking and listening, prioritizing communication with native speakers over relying solely on audio materials.

    • Be Patient

      • Language learning is an accumulative process. Every word or grammar point learned is a step forward.

★Japanese Writing System

  1. Kana

    • Types: Japanese has hiragana and katakana, both with the same pronunciation, each consisting of about 50 characters derived from kanji.
    • Uses:
      • Hiragana: Used for grammar (e.g., particles), substitutes for difficult kanji, colloquial language, onomatopoeia, and children’s learning.
      • Katakana: Mainly used for loanwords (since kanji cannot represent Roman pronunciations).
    • Kanji:
      • The main component of written Japanese (nouns, verbs, adjectives).
      • Helps distinguish words in sentences without spaces.
      • Due to the abundance of homophones in Japanese, kanji helps differentiate meanings.

  2. Pitch Accent

    • Kana Pronunciation Rules:
      • Each kana is pronounced as either [vowel] or [consonant + vowel], with the exception of 「ん」 and 「ン」.
      • The fixed structure makes it difficult to learn correct pitch accent.
    • Importance of Pitch Accent:
      • Affects naturalness in speech; incorrect pitch can lead to a noticeable foreign accent.
      • Homophones may have different meanings based on pitch.
    • Learning Method:
      • Cannot rely on memorizing rules (as they vary by context and dialect).
      • The most effective method is imitation of native Japanese pronunciation, listening carefully and practicing.

◇Hiragana

  1. Overview

    • Hiragana is the basic phonetic unit of Japanese, capable of writing all Japanese, but since written Japanese lacks spaces, using only hiragana can make it hard to read.
    • Writing Rules:
      • Follow stroke order to ensure smooth writing and avoid bad habits.
      • It is recommended to use handwriting practice sheets.
    • Learning Method:
      • Record and compare pronunciation to ensure accuracy.
      • The most effective way to learn is still through pen and paper practice.

  2. Hiragana Chart

    • 「ん」 is the only kana without a vowel.
    • Special pronunciations:
      • 「し」(shi), ち (chi), つ (tsu) have different pronunciations from the usual consonant + vowel.
      • 「r」 sound requires the tongue to touch the roof of the mouth.
      • Note the difference between 「tsu」 and「su」.
    n w r y m h n t s k a
    ん
    (n)    		 わ ら や ま は な た さ か あ
      ゐ* り   み ひ に ち
    (chi)    		 し
    (shi)    		 き い
        る ゆ む ふ
    (fu)    		 ぬ つ
    (tsu)    		 す く う
      ゑ* れ   め へ ね て せ け え
      を
    (o)    		 ろ よ も ほ の と そ こ お

    * = No longer used

  3. Voiced and Semi-Voiced Sounds

    • Voiced Sounds: Formed by adding 「゛」(dakuten) to the upper right corner of a kana, e.g.:
      • か → が (ka → ga)
      • さ → ざ (sa → za)
    • Semi-Voiced Sounds: Formed by adding 「゜」(handakuten) to the upper right corner, only used with the 「は」 row:
      • は → ぱ (ha → pa)
      • ひ → ぴ (hi → pi)
    p b d z g a
    ぱ ば だ ざ が a
    ぴ び ぢ
    (ji)    		 じ
    (ji)    		 ぎ i
    ぷ ぶ づ
    (dzu)    		 ず ぐ u
    ぺ べ で ぜ げ e
    ぽ ぼ ど ぞ ご o

  4. Small 「や」「ゆ」「よ」 Combinations

    • Use small kana 「ゃ」「ゅ」「ょ」 to connect with /i/ column kana, forming new sounds, e.g.:
      • き + ゃ = きゃ (kya)
      • し + ゅ = しゅ (shu)
      • ち + よ = ちょ (cho)
    p b j g r m h n c s k ya
    ぴゃ びゃ じゃ ぎゃ りゃ みゃ ひゃ にゃ ちゃ しゃ きゃ ya
    ぴゅ びゅ じゅ ぎゅ りゅ みゅ ひゅ にゅ ちゅ しゅ きゅ yu
    ぴょ びょ じょ ぎょ りょ みょ ひょ にょ ちょ しょ きょ yo

  5. Small 「つ」 (Sokuon)

    • Small 「つ」 indicates a repeated consonant sound, emphasizing pronunciation, e.g.:
      • がっき (gakki)
      • はっぱ (happa)
      • ろっく (rokku)

    Examples:

    Kana Pronunciation Example Word
    がっき gakki instrument
    はっぱ happa leaf
    ろっく rokku rock
    トラック to-rak-ku truck
    ざっし zas-shi magazine
    カップ kap-pu cup

  6. Long Vowels

    • Lengthen pronunciation by adding the corresponding vowel after a kana:
    Vowel Kana Used for Lengthening
    /a/ あ
    /i/, /e/ い
    /u/, /o/ う

    Examples:

    Kana Pronunciation Meaning
    がくせい ga-ku-sei student
    せんせい sen-sei teacher
    きょう kyou today
    おはよう o-ha-you good morning
    おかあさん o-kaa-san mother

    ⚠ Note:

    • The principle of long vowels is simple. Try pronouncing 「か」 and 「あ」 separately, then quickly in succession. You’ll soon notice it sounds like extending the /ka/ sound. Remember, you’re actually pronouncing two sounds.
    • 「ここ」(koko, here) vs. 「こうこう」(koukou, high school)
    • 「おばさん」(obasan, aunt) vs. 「おばあさん」(obaasan, grandmother)
    • In rare cases, /e/ vowels may also be lengthened with 「え」, and /o/ vowels with 「お」. Examples include 「おねえさん」、「おおい」 and 「おおきい」. Be aware of these exceptions, though they are few.

  7. Practice Resources

◇Hiragana Practice

  1. Hiragana Chart Fill-in-the-Blank
  • Although there are many online resources for learning hiragana, for the completeness of this guide, a fill-in-the-blank exercise is provided here. Obsolete kana have been removed, and it is recommended to use pen and paper for practice.

Hiragana Chart

n w r y m h n t s k a
ん わ ら や ま は な た さ か あ
    り   み ひ に ち し き い
    る ゆ む ふ ぬ つ す く う
    れ   め へ ね て せ け え
  を ろ よ も ほ の と そ こ お

  1. Hiragana Writing Practice

    • This exercise is for practicing writing Japanese words. To avoid ambiguity, separators are added between each kana.

    • Do not study the Romanized spelling; this is only to test your auditory memory.

    • Exercise 1

      • たべもの ＝ ta | be | mo | no
      • くるま ＝ ku | ru | ma
      • あした ＝ a | shi | ta
      • こくせき ＝ ko | ku | se | ki
      • おすし ＝ o | su | shi
      • たべる ＝ ta | be | ru
      • わからない ＝ wa | ka | ra | na | i
      • さずける ＝ sa | zu | ke | ru
      • りくつ ＝ ri | ku | tsu
      • たちよみ ＝ ta | chi | yo | mi
      • ものまね ＝ mo | no | ma | ne
      • ひがえり ＝ hi | ga | e | ri
      • ぽんず ＝ pon | zu
      • ひるめし ＝ hi | ru | me | shi
      • れきし ＝ re | ki | shi
      • ふゆかい ＝ fu | yu | ka | i

    • Exercise 2

      • Write hiragana with small 「や」、「ゆ」、「よ」, as well as long vowels.

      • Answer which kana should be used to lengthen the sound.

      • じゅぎょう ＝ jyu | gyo－

      • ぬるいおちゃ ＝ nu | ru | i | o | cha

      • きゅうきょく ＝ kyu－ | kyo | ku

      • うんようじょうほう ＝ un | yo－ | jyo－ | ho－

      • びょうどう ＝ byo－ | do－

      • じょうとうしゅだん ＝ jyo－ | to－ | shu | dan

      • ぎゅうにゅう ＝ gyu－ | nyu－

      • しょうりゃく ＝ sho－ | rya | ku

      • ひゃくねんはやい ＝ hya | ku | nen | ha | ya | i

      • そつぎょうしき ＝ so | tsu | gyo－ | shi | ki

      • とうにょうびょう ＝ to－ | nyo－ | byo－

      • むりょう ＝ mu | ryo－

      • みょうじ ＝ myo－ | ji

      • おかあさん ＝ o | ka－ | san

      • ろうにん ＝ ro－ | nin

      • りゅうがくせい ＝ ryu－ | ga | ku | se | i

  2. Hiragana Reading Practice

    • Practice reading Japanese words, paying special attention to the pronunciation of small 「つ」.

    • Remember not to focus too much on Romanized spelling; the goal is to test if you remember the pronunciation.

    • Reading Practice

      • きゃっかんてき ＝ kyakkanteki
      • はっぴょうけっか ＝ happyoukekka
      • ちょっかん ＝ chokkan
      • ひっし ＝ hisshi
      • ぜったい ＝ zettai
      • けっちゃく ＝ kecchaku
      • しっぱい ＝ shippai
      • ちゅうとはんぱ ＝ chuutohanpa
      • やっかい ＝ yakkai
      • しょっちゅう ＝ shotchuu

◇Katakana (カタカナ)

  1. Overview

    • Katakana is mainly used for:
      • Loanwords (e.g., コンピュータ - computer)
      • Emphasis (similar to italics in English)
      • Onomatopoeia (e.g., ドキドキ - heartbeat)
      • Special purposes (e.g., biological names, company brands, etc.)

    Katakana pronunciation is identical to its corresponding hiragana, only the writing differs. Loanwords must adapt to the Japanese [consonant + vowel] structure, which may result in pronunciation differing from the original language. For example, the English word “coffee” is written as 「コーヒー」(kōhī) in Japanese.

    When learning katakana, discard the original English pronunciation and memorize it in Japanese, otherwise, it may be difficult for Japanese people to understand.

    Katakana Chart

    n w r y m h n t s k a Row
    ン (n) ワ ラ ヤ マ ハ ナ タ サ カ ア
      ヰ* リ   ミ ヒ ニ チ (chi) シ (shi) キ イ
        ル ユ ム フ (fu) ヌ ツ (tsu) ス ク ウ
      ヱ* レ   メ ヘ ネ テ セ ケ エ
      ヲ* ロ ヨ モ ホ ノ ト ソ コ オ
    * No longer used or rarely used.

  2. Writing and Recognition

    • Pronunciation is the same as hiragana, but the writing differs.
    • 「ヲ」 is only used as a particle and is almost never used in modern Japanese; it can be ignored.
    • Easily confused katakana:
      • 「シ」「ン」「ツ」「ソ」: The first two are more vertical, the latter two more horizontal.
      • 「ノ」「メ」「ヌ」, 「フ」「ワ」「ウ」 are also easily confused.
      • Solutions:
    • Separator 「・」: Used to separate compound loanwords, e.g., 「ロック・アンド・ロール」(rock and roll).

  3. Long Vowels (ー)

    • Long vowels in katakana are represented by 「ー」, without the need for additional kana.
    • Examples:
      • ツアー (tsua-) → tour
      • メール (me-ru) → email
      • ケーキ (ke-ki) → cake

  4. Small Kana and Additional Sounds

    • Japanese lacks certain foreign syllables, so small 「ア、イ、ウ、エ、オ」 are used:
      v w f ch d t j sh
      ヴァ ワ ファ チャ ダ タ ジャ シャ (a)
      ヴィ ウィ フィ チ ディ ティ ジ シ (i)
      ヴ ウ フ チュ ドゥ トゥ ジュ シュ (u)
      ヴェ ウェ フェ チェ デ テ ジェ シェ (e)
      ヴォ ウォ フォ チョ ド ト ジョ ショ (o)
    • Notes:
      • /wu/ sound does not exist, e.g., “woman” is written as 「ウーマン」.
      • /tu/ sound is written as 「トゥ」, but older words still use 「ツ」, e.g., 「ツール」(tool).
      • Early loanword substitution rules:
        • building was formerly written as 「ビルヂング」, now written as 「ビルディング」.

  5. Katakana Example Words

    English Katakana
    America アメリカ
    Russia ロシア
    cheating カンニング (cunning)
    tour ツアー
    company employee サラリーマン (salary man)
    Mozart モーツァルト
    car horn クラクション (klaxon)
    sofa ソファ / ソファー
    Halloween ハロウィーン
    French fries フライドポテト (fried potato)

◇Katakana Practice

This exercise aims to help learners familiarize themselves with katakana writing, pronunciation, and its use in loanwords.

  1. Katakana Memory Test

    n w r y m h n t s k a Row
    ン ワ ラ ヤ マ ハ ナ タ サ カ ア
        リ   ミ ヒ ニ チ シ キ イ
        ル ユ ム フ ヌ ツ ス ク ウ
        レ   メ ヘ ネ テ セ ケ エ
        ロ ヨ モ ホ ノ ト ソ コ オ

  2. Katakana Writing Practice

    • This exercise aims to help learners correctly write katakana words and familiarize themselves with the pronunciation rules of loanwords in Japanese.

    • Katakana Writing Exercise 1 (Basic Vocabulary)

      Romanization Katakana Meaning
      ta be mo no タベモノ food
      pan パン bread
      kon pyu－ ta コンピュータ computer
      myu－ ji ka ru ミュージカル musical
      u－ man ウーマン woman
      he a pi－ su ヘアピース hairpiece
      nu－ do ヌード nude
      me nyu－ メニュー menu
      ro－ te－ shon ローテーション rotation
      ha i kin gu ハイキング hiking
      kyan se ru キャンセル cancel
      ha ne mu－n ハネムーン honeymoon
      ku ri su ma su tsu ri－ クリスマスツリー Christmas tree
      ra i to ライト light
      na i to ge－ mu ナイトゲーム night game

    • Katakana Writing Exercise 2 (Special Pronunciation)

      • This section covers more challenging katakana words, including loanwords with irregular pronunciations.

      • Katakana Word List

        Romanization Katakana Meaning
        e i zu wi ru su エイズウイルス HIV virus
        no－ su sai do ノースサイド north side
        in fo me－ shon インフォメーション information
        pu ro ji e ku to プロジェクト project
        fa su to fu－ do ファストフード fast food
        she ru su ku ri pu to シェルスクリプト shell script
        we－ to re su ウェートレス waitress
        ma i ho－ mu マイホーム my home
        chi－ mu wa－ ku チームワーク teamwork
        mi ni su ka－ to ミニスカート miniskirt
        re－ za－ di su ku レーザーディスク laser disc
        chen ji チェンジ change
        re gyu ra－ レギュラー regular
        we i to ri fu tin gu ウェイトリフティング weightlifting

    • Katakana Spelling Rules

      • When converting English words to katakana, the following rules apply:
      • No distinction between L/R: Japanese does not distinguish between L and R, both are represented by the 「ラ」 row.
        • Ready → レディ
        • Lady → レディ
      • Long vowel representation: Consecutive vowels or words ending in /r/ often become long vowels (ー).
        • Target → ターゲット
        • Shoot → シュート
      • Sokuon (small ッ): Used to represent a dropped /t/ or /c/ sound.
        • Catch → キャッチ
        • Cache → キャッシュ
      • Supplemental vowels for consonant endings: Japanese words end in vowels (except for “n” and “m”, since we have 「ン」). For “t” and “d”, “o” is usually added; for others, “u” is generally used:
        • Good → グッド
        • Top → トップ
        • Jack → ジャック

    • English to Katakana Conversion Practice

      • This exercise covers common loanword conversions.
        Example: Europe ＝ ヨーロッパ
        English Katakana Meaning
        check チェック check
        violin バイオリン violin
        jet coaster (roller coaster) ジェットコースター roller coaster
        window shopping ウィンドーショッピング window shopping
        salsa サルサ salsa
        hotdog ホットドッグ hotdog
        suitcase スーツケース suitcase
        kitchen キッチン kitchen
        restaurant レストラン restaurant
        New York ニューヨーク New York

◇Kanji

  1. What is Kanji?

    • In Japanese, nouns, adjective stems, and verbs are basically written in Chinese characters, which are called Kanji. Adverbs are also usually written in Kanji, so to read written Japanese, one must master Kanji (except for children’s books and materials for those who do not know Kanji). However, not all words use Kanji; for example, the verb “to do” (する) is usually written in Hiragana.
    • This guide uses Kanji from the beginning to familiarize you with real Japanese as quickly as possible. We will first introduce the basic characteristics of Kanji and then discuss efficient learning methods. Mastering Kanji is not easy, but it is not impossible. The key lies in the correct approach and long-term memory strategies.

  2. Methods for Learning Kanji

    • Resources for learning Kanji can be found online, such as:
      • Jim Breen’s WWWJDIC
      • Jisho.org
      • These websites provide stroke orders for most Kanji. For beginners, repetitive writing is a good way to memorize stroke orders. When writing Kanji, pay attention to the overall balance to avoid top-heaviness. Through continuous practice, you will develop an intuition for stroke order, reducing reliance on models.

  3. Rules for Reading Kanji

  • On’yomi (音読み) and Kun’yomi (訓読み)

    • Basically, each Kanji has two reading methods:

    • On’yomi (音読み): Derived from Chinese readings, mainly used for compound words (熟語).

    • Kun’yomi (訓読み): Native Japanese readings, usually used for standalone Kanji.

    • For example:

      Kanji Kun’yomi On’yomi Example
      力 ちから りょく 能力（のうりょく）

      Some Kanji may have multiple On’yomi or Kun’yomi readings. For example, in 「怪力」（かいりき）, 「力」 is read as 「りき」 instead of 「りょく」.

  1. Okurigana (送り仮名)

    • In verbs and adjectives, Kanji are usually followed by Hiragana, which is called Okurigana. For example:

      • Verb: 「食べる」（たべる, to eat）→「食べた」（たべた, ate）
      • Adjective: 「新しい」（あたらしい, new）

    • Functions of Okurigana:

      1. Distinguish different parts of speech (intransitive and transitive verbs).
      2. Help indicate inflections (tense, voice, etc.).

  2. Sound Changes (音変)

    • Kanji in compound words may undergo sound changes to make pronunciation smoother. For example:

      • /h/ → /b/ or /p/:
        • 一本（いっぽん）
        • 徹底（てってい）
      • 「つ」 becomes 「っ」:
        • 格好（かっこう）

  3. Differences Between Similar Kanji

    • Some Kanji with similar meanings express subtle differences in different contexts. For example:

      • Different Expressions for “Listen”

        • 聞く（きく）：General “listen” or “ask”.
        • 聴く（きく）：Specifically “listen attentively”, such as listening to a concert.
        • 訊く（きく）：Only means “to inquire”.

      • Different Expressions for “See”

        • 見る（みる）：General “see”.
        • 観る（みる）：Watch a performance or movie.

      • Different Expressions for “Write” and “Draw”

        • 書く（かく）：Write characters.
        • 描く（かく）：Draw pictures.
        • 描く（えがく）：Depict (abstract scenes).

  4. 々——Repetition Symbol

    • In Japanese, there is a special symbol 「々」 used to repeat the preceding Kanji, for example:

      • 時時 → 時々（ときどき）
      • 様様 → 様々（さまざま）
      • 色色 → 色々（いろいろ）
      • 一一 → 一々（いちいち）

  5. Why Use Kanji?

    • Some people think that using three scripts (Kanji, Hiragana, Katakana) in Japanese is too complicated, but in fact, Kanji helps improve reading efficiency.

    • Resolving Homophone Ambiguity

      The limited number of pronunciations in Japanese leads to many homophones. For example, 「きかん」（kikan） can have the following meanings:

      • 機関（きかん）：Organization
      • 期間（きかん）：Period
      • 帰還（きかん）：Return
      • 基幹（きかん）：Foundation

      Without Kanji, it would be difficult to distinguish meanings when written only in Kana.

    • Enhancing Visual Recognition

      • Compared to sentences written entirely in Hiragana, text using Kanji is easier to understand quickly. For example:

        • Kana Writing:

          わたしはきのうともだちとえいがをみました。

        • Kanji Mixed Writing:

          私は昨日友達と映画を見ました。

      • Using Kanji allows keywords in sentences to be quickly recognized, reducing cognitive load during reading.

    • Avoiding Space Issues

      • Korean uses an alphabetic system, so spaces are needed to separate words, whereas Japanese using Kanji greatly improves text readability without the need for additional spaces. For example:

        • Korean:

          나는 어제 친구와 영화를 보았다。

        • Japanese:

          私は昨日友達と映画を見ました。

      • Kanji itself provides sufficient visual separation, eliminating the need for spaces.

★Basic Grammar

  • After learning how to write Japanese, we can begin to study the basic grammatical structures of Japanese. This chapter mainly covers the following content:

    • Nouns
    • Adjectives
    • Verbs
    • Adverbs

  • Additionally, we will introduce how to use particles to combine various parts into coherent sentences. After completing this chapter, you will master the basic sentence structures.

    No. Topic Summary
    1 State Expression い-adjectives, な-adjectives, and verbs can be used to describe states
    2 Introduction to Particles は (topic), が (subject), を (object), etc.
    3 Adjectives い-adjectives, な-adjectives, and their conjugation rules
    4 Verb Basics Group 1 (五段), Group 2 (上一段/下一段), Group 3 (irregular)
    5 Negative Form of Verbs Group 1 「う→あ+ない」, Group 2 「去る+ない」, Group 3 special conjugations
    6 Past Tense Group 1 (complex changes), Group 2 (去る+た), Group 3 (する→した)
    7 Particles Used with Verbs を (object), に (target), で (location)
    8 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Transitive verbs require an object, intransitive verbs occur on their own
    9 Relative Clauses and Word Order Relative clauses precede, subject-object-verb order
    10 Particles Related to Nouns の (possession), と (listing)
    11 Adverbs and Sentence-ending Particles Adverbs (degree, manner), ね (confirmation), よ (emphasis)

◇State Representation

  1. Using 「だ」 to Represent the State of Something

    • Vocabulary Learning

      人【ひと】 - Person

      学生【がく・せい】 - Student

      元気【げん・き】 - Healthy, Energetic
      Used to ask about someone’s well-being

    • In Japanese, there is no state verb equivalent to the English “to be.” However, you can add 「だ」 after a noun or な adjective to represent a state. (な adjectives will be explained in detail in the Adjectives chapter)

      Rule: Noun/な Adjective + だ

      Example: 人＋だ → 人だ

    • Examples

      人だ。      （Is a person.）
学生だ。    （Is a student.）
元気だ。    （Is well.）

    • Omitting 「だ」

      In spoken language, 「だ」 can be omitted when representing a state. Note that the subject is also often omitted because it can easily be inferred from context:

      Ａ：元気？ （How are you?）

      Ｂ：元気。 （I’m fine.）

    • When to Use 「だ」?

      Using 「だ」 adds emphasis and makes the statement more formal. It is more commonly used by males in spoken language.

      Certain grammatical structures require the use of 「だ」 to clearly indicate the state, but you don’t need to worry about these details for now.

  2. Conjugation for Negative States

    • Vocabulary Learning

      学生【がく・せい】 - Student

      友達【とも・だち】 - Friend

      元気【げん・き】 - Healthy, Energetic
      Used to ask about someone’s well-being

    • In Japanese, negative and past forms are expressed through conjugation rather than simply adding 「だ」.

    • Representing Negative States

      Rule: Noun/な Adjective + じゃない

      Example: 学生＋じゃない → 学生じゃない

    • Examples

      学生じゃない。      （Is not a student.）
友達じゃない。      （Is not a friend.）
元気じゃない。      （Is not well.）

  3. Conjugation for Past States

    • Vocabulary Learning

      学生【がく・せい】 - Student

      友達【とも・だち】 - Friend

      元気【げん・き】 - Healthy, Energetic
      Used to ask about someone’s well-being

    • Representing Past States

      Rule: Noun/な Adjective + だった（Was）

      Example: 友達＋だった → 友達だった

    • Examples

      学生だった。    （Was a student.）
友達だった。    （Was a friend.）
元気だった。    （Was well.）

    • Negative Past States

      Rule: Noun/な Adjective + じゃなかった（Was not） Steps:

      • First, change to negative form: 「じゃない」
      • Replace the 「い」 in 「じゃない」 with 「かった」

      Example: 友達じゃない → 友達じゃなかった

    • Examples

      友達じゃなかった。    （Was not a friend.）
学生じゃなかった。    （Was not a student.）
元気じゃなかった。    （Was not well.）

  4. Conjugation Summary Table

    These are the four ways to express states!

    Affirmative Negative
    Non-Past 学生（だ） 学生じゃない
    Is a student Is not a student
    Past 学生だった 学生じゃなかった
    Was a student Was not a student

    Next, you can learn how to use particles to further modify these states.

◇State Expression Practice

  1. Vocabulary for This Section

    • Kanji

      Below are the kanji covered in this section. It is recommended to learn kanji within the context of words:

      • 人 - Person
      • 子 - Child
      • 小 - Small
      • 中 - Middle
      • 大 - Big
      • 友 - Friend
      • 生 - Life
      • 先 - Previous
      • 学 - Study
      • 校 - School
      • 高 - High
      • 車 - Car
      • 供 - Accompany
      • 達 - Reach

    • Word Study

      Below are the words that will be used in the exercises:

      • Spoken Expressions

      • うん - Yes (spoken)

      • ううん - No (spoken)

      • Demonstratives

      • これ - This

      • それ - That

      • あれ - That (over there)

      • こう - Like this

      • そう - Like that

      • Nouns

      • 人（ひと） - Person

      • 大人（おとな） - Adult

      • 子供（こども） - Child

      • 友達（ともだち） - Friend

      • 車（くるま） - Car

      • 学生（がくせい） - Student

      • 先生（せんせい） - Teacher

      • 学校（がっこう） - School

      • 小学校（しょうがっこう） - Elementary School

      • 中学校（ちゅうがっこう） - Middle School

      • 高校（こうこう） - High School

      • 大学（だいがく） - University

  2. Conjugation Practice I

    Conjugate the following nouns into declarative, negative, past, and past negative forms.

    Example:

    人 → 人だ / 人じゃない / 人だった / 人じゃなかった

    Word Declarative Negative Past Past Negative
    これ これだ これじゃない これだった これじゃなかった
    大人 大人だ 大人じゃない 大人だった 大人じゃなかった
    学校 学校だ 学校じゃない 学校だった 学校じゃなかった
    友達 友達だ 友達じゃない 友達だった 友達じゃなかった
    学生 学生だ 学生じゃない 学生だった 学生じゃなかった

  3. Conjugation Practice II Translate the following sentences into Japanese, explicitly writing out the conjugated forms.

    1. It is a university. → 大学だ。
    2. It is not a high school. → 高校じゃない。
    3. He/She was a teacher. → 先生だった。
    4. It is an adult. → 大人だ。
    5. He/She was not a child. → 子供じゃなかった。
    6. It was like this. → こうだった。
    7. It was not that. → あれじゃなかった。
    8. It is not a middle school. → 中学校じゃない。
    9. It is a friend. → 友達だ。
    10. It was not a car. → 車じゃなかった。
    11. It was this. → これだった。
    12. It is not like that. → そうじゃない。

  4. Answering Questions Practice

    Answer using 「うん」 or 「ううん」 and complete the sentence. Males use 「だ」, while females omit it.

    Example:

    Q）Student?
    A）ううん、学生じゃない。

    Question Answer
    Q1）Friend? A1）うん、友達。（Female）
    Q2）School? A2）ううん、学校じゃない。
    Q3）Was it that? A3）ううん、それじゃなかった。
    Q4）Is that so? A4）うん、そうだ。（Male）
    Q5）This? A5）ううん、それじゃない。（Object is far from the responder）
    Q6）Was he/she a teacher? A6）うん、先生だった。
    Q7）Was it an elementary school? A7）ううん、小学校じゃなかった。
    Q8）Child? A8）うん、子供。（Female）

  5. Review Key Points

    ✅ Four Conjugations of State

    Tense Affirmative Negative
    Non-past 学生（だ） 学生じゃない
    Past 学生だった 学生じゃなかった

    ✅ Key Takeaways:

    • 「だ」 can only be attached to nouns and な adjectives to indicate state.
    • In spoken language, 「だ」 can be omitted, but it must be explicitly used in certain grammatical structures.
    • 「じゃない」 is used to negate the current state.
    • 「だった」 indicates a past state, and 「じゃなかった」 indicates a past negative state.
    • Males tend to use 「だ」 more frequently in spoken language, while females use it less often.
    • When answering questions, the subject can be omitted in spoken language, but the meaning should be inferred from context.

◇Introduction to Particles

Using Particles to Define Grammatical Functions

Particles are hiragana characters in Japanese used to define the grammatical function of words in a sentence. They are crucial because changing a particle can alter the entire meaning of a sentence. For example, changing a particle can turn “eat fish” into “fish eat.”

The Topic Particle 「は」

  • Vocabulary

    学生（がく・せい） - Student
    うん - Yes (casual)
    明日（あした） - Tomorrow
    ううん - No (casual)
    今日（きょう） - Today
    試験（しけん） - Exam

  • 「は」 is used to indicate the topic of a sentence. For example, if someone says “not a student,” it is grammatically correct in Japanese, but it is unclear what the speaker is referring to. The topic particle allows us to specify what the sentence is about, and that particle is 「は」. When used as a topic particle, 「は」 is pronounced as / wa /.

  • Example 1

    ボブ：アリスは学生？
Bob：Is Alice a student?

アリス：うん、学生。
Alice：Yes, (I) am.

    Bob’s question is about Alice, so Alice can omit the topic in her response.

  • Example 2

    ボブ：ジョンは明日？
Bob：Is John tomorrow?

アリス：ううん、明日じゃない。
Alice：No, not tomorrow.

    Additional context is needed, such as they might be discussing when John’s exam is.

  • Example 3

    アリス：今日は試験だ。
Alice：Today is the exam.

ボブ：ジョンは？
Bob：What about John?

アリス：ジョンは明日。
Alice：John is tomorrow. (For John, the exam is tomorrow.)

    Here, the topic 「は」 covers a broad scope, allowing the omission of specific nouns. The topic can refer to any action or object in any location, and can even include other sentences.

The Inclusive Topic Particle 「も」

  • Vocabulary

    学生（がく・せい） - Student
    うん - Yes (casual)
    でも - But
    ううん - No (casual)

    「も」 is equivalent to “also” and can introduce a new topic based on the current topic.

  • Example 1

    ボブ：アリスは学生？
Bob：Is Alice a student?

アリス：うん、トムも学生。
Alice：Yes, Tom is also a student.

    Using 「も」 maintains logical consistency in the sentence. For example, “I am a student, but Tom is not a student” would be unnatural. In such cases, you can use 「は」 to introduce a new topic, as in Example 2.

  • Example 2

    ボブ：アリスは学生？
Bob：Is Alice a student?

アリス：うん、でもトムは学生じゃない。
Alice：Yes, but Tom is not a student.

  • Example 3 (Negative Inclusion)

    ボブ：アリスは学生？
Bob：Is Alice a student?

アリス：ううん、トムも学生じゃない。
Alice：No, Tom is also not a student.

The Identifying Particle 「が」

  • Vocabulary

    誰（だれ） - Who
    学生（がく・せい） - Student
    私（わたし） - I, Myself

  • Now that we can establish topics using 「は」 and 「も」, what if we don’t know the topic? If I want to ask “Who is that student?”, I need to identify an object (identifier) because I don’t know who that student is. If I still use the topic particle, the question becomes “Is who a student?”, which sounds strange because “who” is not an actual person.

  • 「が」 is used to identify a specific object or attribute and is called the identifying particle.

  • Example 1

    ボブ：誰が学生？
Bob：Who is the student?

アリス：ジョンが学生。
Alice：John is the student.

    「が」 is used to specify who the “student” is.

  • Example 2

    誰が学生？
Who is the student?

学生は誰？
Who is the student?

    The first sentence uses 「が」 to identify a student among a group of people, while the second sentence uses 「は」 to simply talk about the student.

    The 「が」 in the first sentence cannot be replaced with 「は」, otherwise “who” becomes the topic, and the sentence would mean “Is who a student?”

  • Example 3

    私は学生。
I am a student.

私が学生。
I am the student. (Emphasizing "I am the student")

    「は」 is used to introduce a topic, while 「が」 emphasizes identification.

    In the first sentence, “私” is the topic, so the meaning is “As for me, I am a student.”

    But the second sentence aims to specify who the “student” is. If we want to know who the student is, the particle 「が」 tells us it is “私.”

    I often translate the topic particle as “as for; about” and the identifying particle as “the one; the thing” to distinguish them.

    • Semantic Distinction 
      私は学生。
As for me, (I am) a student.

私が学生。
I am the one (who is) the student.

    The particle 「が」 is typically used to answer “Who is the student?”

    If you follow my method of thinking, you’ll realize that the particles 「は」 and 「が」 are quite different. The particle 「が」 is used to identify an attribute of something or someone, while the particle 「は」 is simply used to introduce a new topic. Therefore, in long sentences, people often use commas to separate the topic to avoid ambiguity about which part of the sentence is the topic.

Summary

  • 「は」: Indicates the topic, emphasizing what is being discussed.
  • 「も」: Means “also,” adding new information based on the existing topic.
  • 「が」: Used to identify or emphasize a specific object or attribute.

◇ Particle Practice

  1. Vocabulary for This Chapter

    • Kanji

      Below are the kanji used in the new vocabulary. If you are unfamiliar with the stroke order, it is recommended to consult a dictionary. I suggest learning kanji within the context of words (e.g., the vocabulary listed later).

      Kanji Meaning
      何 What
      映 Projection
      画 Picture
      彼 He
      女 Female
      昨 Previous
      日 Day
      今 Now
      明 Bright
      知 Know
      合 Match
      鉛 Lead
      筆 Brush
      入 Enter
      口 Mouth
      出 Exit
      図 Plan
      書 Write
      館 Building
      水 Water

    • Vocabulary Learning

      Below are simple nouns that will be used in the exercises later:

      Japanese Reading Meaning
      どこ doko Where
      いつ itsu When
      どうして doushite Why
      どう dou How
      どれ dore Which
      ミーティング miitingu Meeting
      ボールペン boorupen Ballpoint pen
      何【なに】 nani What
      誰【だれ】 dare Who
      映画【えいが】 eiga Movie
      彼【かれ】 kare He; Boyfriend
      彼女【かのじょ】 kanojo She; Girlfriend
      雨【あめ】 ame Rain
      水【みず】 mizu Water
      昨日【きのう】 kinou Yesterday
      今日【きょう】 kyou Today
      明日【あした】 ashita Tomorrow
      知り合い【しりあい】 shiriai Acquaintance
      鉛筆【えんぴつ】 enpitsu Pencil
      仕事【しごと】 shigoto Work
      入口【いりぐち】 iriguchi Entrance
      出口【でぐち】 deguchi Exit
      図書館【としょかん】 toshokan Library

  2. Basic Practice with 「は」

    • First, let’s review the basic concept of particles. 「は」 is a topic particle, indicating the topic of the sentence, and is pronounced as / wa /.

    • Example: Who? (Topic: Alice) → アリスは誰？ (Who is Alice?)

    • Where? (Topic: School) → 学校はどこ？ (Where is the school?)

    • Why? (Topic: That) → それはどうして？ (Why is that?)

    • When? (Topic: Meeting) → ミーティングはいつ？ (When is the meeting?)

    • What? (Topic: This) → これは何？ (What is this?)

    • How? (Topic: Movie) → 映画はどう？ (How is the movie?)

    • He is a middle school student. (Topic: He) → 彼は中学生だ。 (He is a middle school student.)

    • She is a teacher. (Topic: She) → 彼女は先生だ。 (She is a teacher.)

    • It’s raining. (Topic: Today) → 今日は雨。 (It’s raining today.)

    • Bob is a friend. (Topic: Bob) → ボブは友達。 (Bob is a friend.)

    • Is he an acquaintance? (Topic: He) → 彼は知り合い？ (Is he an acquaintance?)

  3. Practice with 「は」 and 「も」

    • Now, let’s practice the difference between 「は」 and 「も」. 「も」 means “also” and indicates that something is similar to what was mentioned before.

    • Example: これは鉛筆だ。それも鉛筆だ。 (This is a pencil, and that is also a pencil.)

    • Today it’s raining. Yesterday it was raining. → 昨日も雨だった。

    • Jim is a college student. But I am not a college student. → 私は大学生じゃない。

    • This is water. This is also water. → これもそう。

    • This is a ballpoint pen. But that is not a ballpoint pen. → それはボールペンじゃない。

    • Work is tomorrow. Today was not work. → 今日は仕事じゃなかった。

    • This is the entrance. The exit is also here. → 出口もここだ。

  4. Comprehensive Practice with 「は」、「も」, and 「が」

    Choose the appropriate particle for different scenarios. 「が」 is used to emphasize specific information.

    • Dialogue 1

      ジム） アリスは誰？  
ボブ） 友達だ。彼女がアリスだ。  

(Jim: Who is Alice?
Bob: She is a friend. She is Alice.)

    • Dialogue 2

      アリス） これは何？  
ボブ） それは鉛筆。  
アリス） あれも鉛筆？  
ボブ） あれはペンだ。  

(Alice: What is this?
Bob: That is a pencil.
Alice: Is that also a pencil?
Bob: That is a pen.)

    • Dialogue 3

      アリス） 図書館はどこ？  
ボブ） ここが図書館だ。  
アリス） そこは図書館じゃない？  
ボブ） そこじゃない。図書館はここだ。  

(Alice: Where is the library?
Bob: Here is the library.
Alice: Isn't that the library?
Bob: No, the library is here.)

◇ Adjectives

  1. Properties of Adjectives

    Japanese adjectives are divided into な adjectives and い adjectives.

    • な adjectives are similar to nouns and require 「な」 when modifying a noun.
    • い adjectives end in 「い」 and directly modify nouns.

  2. な Adjectives

    • Vocabulary Learning
      • 静か 【しず・か】 （な adjective） - Quiet
      • 人 【ひと】 - Person
      • きれい （な adjective） - Pretty; Clean
      • 友達 【とも・だち】 - Friend
      • 親切 【しん・せつ】 （な adjective） - Kind
      • 魚 【さかな】 - Fish
      • 好き 【す・き】 （な adjective） - Likable
      • 肉 【にく】 - Meat
      • 野菜 【や・さい】 - Vegetables
    • Usage of な Adjectives
      1. Modifying Nouns (requires 「な」): 
        静かな人。(A quiet person)
きれいな人。(A pretty person)
      2. As a Predicate in a Sentence (similar to nouns): 
        友達は親切。(The friend is kind.)
友達は親切な人だ。(The friend is a kind person.)
      3. Used with Particle 「が」 (expressing likes): 
        ボブは魚が好きだ。(Bob likes fish.)
ボブは魚が好きじゃない。(Bob does not like fish.)
ボブは魚が好きだった。(Bob used to like fish.)
ボブは魚が好きじゃなかった。(Bob did not like fish.)

In the above examples, the topic particle and the identifying particle are used together. The topic of the sentence is "Bob," and 「fish」 identifies what Bob likes.
      4. Modifying Noun Clauses (clause form): 
        魚が好きな人。(A person who likes fish)
魚が好きじゃない人。(A person who does not like fish.)
魚が好きだった人。(A person who used to like fish.)
魚が好きじゃなかった人。(A person who did not like fish.)

We can also treat the entire noun clause modified by the adjective as a single noun. For example, we can make the entire clause the topic of the sentence, as shown below.

魚が好きじゃない人は、肉が好きだ。(People who do not like fish like meat.)
魚が好きな人は、野菜も好きだ。(People who like fish also like vegetables.)

  3. い Adjectives

    • Vocabulary Learning

      • 嫌い 【きら・い】 （な adjective） - Disliked; Hateful
      • 食べ物 【た・べ・もの】 - Food
      • おいしい （い adjective） - Delicious
      • 高い 【たか・い】 （い adjective） - High; Expensive
      • ビル - Building
      • 値段 【ね・だん】 - Price
      • レストラン - Restaurant
      • あまり／あんまり - Not very (used with negatives)
      • 好き 【す・き】 （な adjective） - Likable
      • いい （い adjective） - Good

    • Usage of い Adjectives

      1. Modifying Nouns (used directly): 
        高いビル。(A tall building)
      2. As a Predicate in a Sentence (cannot add 「だ」): 
        値段が高い。(The price is high.)
      3. Modifying Noun Clauses: 
        値段が高いレストランは好きじゃない。(I don't like expensive restaurants.)

    • Conjugation of い Adjectives

      Form Conjugation Rule Example Meaning
      Affirmative - 高いビル。 A tall building.
      Negative Remove 「い」 + 「くない」 高くないビル。 A building that is not tall.
      Past Remove 「い」 + 「かった」 高かったビル。 A building that was tall.
      Past Negative Negative form remove 「い」 + 「かった」 高くなかったビル。 A building that was not tall.

  4. Special い Adjectives

    • The original form of 「いい」 is 「よい」, and it conjugates as 「よい」.

    • Conjugation Table

      Form いい かっこいい
      Affirmative いい かっこいい
      Negative よくない かっこよくない
      Past よかった かっこよかった
      Past Negative よくなかった かっこよくなかった

    • Example Sentences

      値段があまりよくない。(The price is not very good.)
彼はかっこよかった！(He looked really cool!)

◇ Adjective Practice

  1. Vocabulary Used in This Chapter

    • Kanji

      • 面 - Mask; Face
      • 白 - White
      • 有 - Exist
      • 名 - Name
      • 嫌 - Dislike
      • 好 - Like
      • 静 - Quiet
      • 楽 - Music; Comfort
      • 切 - Cut
      • 辛 - Spicy; Bitter
      • 料 - Ingredients
      • 理 - Reason

    • Vocabulary List

      Below are simple adjectives (and one noun) that may be used in the exercises:

      Japanese Reading Meaning
      きれい Pretty; Neat
      いい Good
      かっこいい Cool; Handsome
      面白い おもしろい Interesting
      有名 ゆうめい Famous
      嫌い きらい Dislike; Hate
      好き すき Like
      大きい おおきい Big
      小さい ちいさい Small
      静か しずか Quiet
      高い たかい Tall; Expensive
      楽しい たのしい Fun
      大切 たいせつ Important
      辛い からい Spicy
      料理 りょうり Dish (Noun)

  2. Adjective Conjugation Practice

    Now, practice conjugating each adjective in the following forms:

    • Plain Form (if applicable)
    • Negative Form
    • Past Form
    • Past Negative Form

    Note: The plain form of い-adjectives does not change, while な-adjectives require 「だ」. If no change is needed, fill in n/a.

    Dictionary Form Plain Form Negative Form Past Form Past Negative Form
    面白い n/a 面白くない 面白かった 面白くなかった
    有名 有名だ 有名じゃない 有名だった 有名じゃなかった
    嫌い 嫌いだ 嫌いじゃない 嫌いだった 嫌いじゃなかった
    好き 好きだ 好きじゃない 好きだった 好きじゃなかった
    大きい n/a 大きくない 大きかった 大きくなかった
    きれい きれいだ きれいじゃない きれいだった きれいじゃなかった
    小さい n/a 小さくない 小さかった 小さくなかった
    いい n/a よくない よかった よくなかった
    静か 静かだ 静かじゃない 静かだった 静かじゃなかった
    高い n/a 高くない 高かった 高くなかった
    かっこいい n/a かっこよくない かっこよかった かっこよくなかった
    楽しい n/a 楽しくない 楽しかった 楽しくなかった
    大切 大切だ 大切じゃない 大切だった 大切じゃなかった

  3. Fill in the Blanks with Appropriate Adjectives or Particles

    Example:
    Q）　Student?
    A）　No, not a student.

    Jim: Alice, are you busy now?
    Alice: No, I’m not busy.

    Alice: What is fun?
    Bob: Games are fun.

    Alice: Who is important to you?
    Bob: Jim is important.

    Alice: Do you like spicy dishes?
    Bob: No, I like dishes that are not spicy.

    Alice: Is Jim cool?
    Bob: No, he’s not cool.

    Alice: Is Bob famous?
    Bob: No, I’m not famous.

    Alice: Was yesterday’s test good?
    Bob: No, it wasn’t good.