"vault backup: 2025-11-06 11:57:04 from Flow"

10-Input/Classes/Japanese_Synopsis_2025-11-06.md

@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+# Japanese Class Synopsis - 2025-11-06
+
+This week, we covered the following topics:
+
+*   **Expressing Hope:** We learned how to say "I hope" for ourselves and for others using [[Synthesized-Japanese-Class-Notes#Expressing Hope (〜といいですね / 〜といいんですが)|〜といいですね and 〜といいんですが]].
+*   **Expressing "When":** We covered the usage of [[Synthesized-Japanese-Class-Notes#Expressing "When" (〜とき)|〜とき]] to talk about when things happen.
+*   **Potential Verbs:** A detailed look at how to form and use [[Synthesized-Japanese-Class-Notes#Potential Verbs|Potential Verbs]] to express ability.

20-Knowledge/Synthesized-Japanese-Class-Notes.md

@@ -69,11 +69,52 @@ Used to express intention or suggestion in a non-polite way.
 - **Ichidan verbs (ru-verbs):** Replace the final 'る' with 'よう'. (e.g., 食べる → 食べよう)
 - **Irregular:** する → しよう, くる → こよう
 
-#### Potential Form ("Can do")
+#### Potential Verbs
+The potential form in Japanese is used to express **ability** or **possibility** (e.g., "can do," "is able to"). Once a verb is in its potential form, it functions grammatically as a **Group 2 (Ichidan) verb**.
 
-- **Godan Verbs (u-verbs):** Change the final "u" sound to an "e" sound.
-- **Ichidan Verbs (ru-verbs):** Remove the final る and add られる.
-- **Irregular Verbs:** する → できる, くる → こられる
+##### 1. How to Form Potential Verbs (Conjugation)
+
+| Verb Group | Base Form (Dictionary) | Conjugation Rule | Potential Form (Plain) | Example |
+| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
+| **Group 1** (Godan/U-verbs) | Ends in a U-row kana | Change the final U-sound to the equivalent **E-sound** and add **る** ($U 
+ightarrow E + る$) | $E-る$ verb | **話す** (hanasu - to speak) $
+ightarrow$ **話せる** (hanaseru - can speak) |
+| **Group 2** (Ichidan/Ru-verbs) | Ends in **る** (preceded by E or I sound) | Replace **る** with **られる** ($る 
+ightarrow られる$) | $られる$ verb | **食べる** (taberu - to eat) $
+ightarrow$ **食べられる** (taberareru - can eat) |
+| **Irregular** (する) | **する** (suru - to do) | Special exception | **できる** (dekiru - can do) | |
+| **Irregular** (来る) | **来る** (kuru - to come) | Special exception | **来られる** (korareru - can come) | |
+
+###### 📝 Note: The ら-Drop (ら抜き言葉)
+In casual speech, especially for Group 2 verbs, the *ら* (ra) is often dropped.
+* **Standard:** 食べられる (taberareru)
+* **Colloquial (Non-Standard):** 食べれる (tabereru)
+
+---
+
+##### 2. Key Grammatical Usage: Particle Change
+
+The most important grammatical rule for potential verbs is the change in the direct object particle.
+
+###### Particle Change: を (o) $
+ightarrow$ が (ga)
+
+When a transitive verb is put into the potential form, the direct object particle usually changes from **を** (*o*) to **が** (*ga*).
+
+| Verb Form | Example Sentence | Meaning |
+| :--- | :--- | :--- |
+| **Non-Potential** | 私は**日本語を**話します。 | I speak Japanese. |
+| **Potential** | 私は**日本語が**話せます。 | I **can** speak Japanese. |
+
+> **Tip:** While **が** is grammatically correct and preferred in formal writing, you may frequently hear **を** used with potential verbs in casual conversation.
+
+---
+
+##### 3. Alternative Expression of Potential
+
+You can express potential without conjugating the verb into its unique form by using the phrase **～ことができる** (koto ga dekiru), which means "the thing/action of [verb] can be done."
+
+* **Formula:** Plain Form of Verb + **ことができる**
 
 | Method               | Example                  | Meaning               |
 | :------------------- | :----------------------- | :-------------------- |