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

type, title, date

type	title	date
Knowledge	Synthesized Japanese Class Notes	2025-10-23

Synthesized Japanese Class Notes

This note is a synthesized compilation of all Japanese class notes from the 10-Input folder. The content has been organized by topic for clarity and ease of reference.

79674766584:0173

Grammar

Parts of Speech

• めいし (名詞) - Noun
• どうし (動詞) - Verb
• けいようし (形容詞) - Adjective
• じょし (助詞) - Particle
• しゅご (主語) - Subject of a sentence

Particles

• か - Placed at the end of a sentence to make it a question.
• の - Connects two nouns (Noun 1 + の + Noun 2), where Noun 1 modifies or describes Noun 2. Can also be used as a placeholder for aforementioned or unknown things.
• に - Indicates a specific point in time, purpose, or location of existence.
• で - Indicates the location where an action takes place or the means by which an action is done ("by").
• も - Means "also" or "too." Can be used to show surprise at a large quantity.
• が - Marks the subject of a sentence or the object of liking/disliking.
• を - Marks the direct object of a verb.
• から / ので - Both mean "because" or "so." ので is generally more formal/polite.
• や - Used to list things loosely, similar to saying "like" or "such as".
• なら - Conditional particle for hypothetical situations, contrasts, or providing information based on a premise ("if").

Verb Conjugations

て-form (Te-form)

The て-form is used to connect verbs, make requests, and in many other grammatical patterns.

• Rules:

  • Verbs ending in う, つ, る → って
  • Verbs ending in ぬ, む, ぶ → んで
  • Verbs ending in く → いて
  • Verbs ending in ぐ → いで
  • Verbs ending in す → して
  • Irregular: する → して, くる → きて

• Usages:

  • 〜てください - Please do...
  • 〜てもいいですか - May I do...?
  • 〜てはいけません / 〜てはだめです - You must not do...
  • 〜て〜て... - To list activities in sequential order.
  • 〜ています - Present continuous tense.
  • まだ + 〜ていません - I haven't done... yet.

Non-Polite (Plain) Form

• のむ (to drink): のまない (neg), のんだ (past), のまなかった (past-neg)
• くる (to come): こない (neg), きた (past), こなかった (past-neg)
• ある (to exist): ない (neg), あった (past), なかった (past-neg)

Volitional Form

Used to express intention or suggestion in a non-polite way.

• Godan verbs (u-verbs): Change the final 'u' sound to an 'o' sound and add 'u'. (e.g., 飲む → 飲もう)
• 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 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.

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 \rightarrow E + る)	E-る verb	話す (hanasu - to speak) \rightarrow 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 \rightarrow られる)	られる verb	食べる (taberu - to eat) \rightarrow 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
Potential Verb	日本語が 話せます。	I can speak Japanese.
Alternative Form	日本語を 話す ことができます。	I can speak Japanese.

Adjective Conjugations

い-Adjectives

• Negative: Replace い with くない.
• Past: Replace い with かった.
• Past Negative: Replace い with くなかった.
• Connecting (Te-form): Replace い with くて.

な-Adjectives

• Negative: Add じゃありません.
• Past: Add でした.
• Past Negative: Add じゃありませんでした.
• Connecting (Te-form): Add で.

Sentence Structures

• Making Invitations:

  • 〜ませんか？ - Polite invitation ("Would you like to...?").
  • 〜ましょう - Suggestion ("Let's...").
  • 〜ましょうか？ - Suggestion/Offer ("Shall we...? / Shall I...?").

• Expressing "I think..." (〜と思います): Place と思います after a phrase in the non-polite tense. Nouns & な-Adjectives require だ.

• Quoting Someone (〜と言います): Use 「 」 for direct quotes followed by と言います.

• Making Comparisons:

  • A の方が B より ADJ です - A is more ADJ than B.

• Expressing Superlatives:

  • [Category] の中で [Question Word] が一番 [ADJ] ですか？ - Within [Category], which/what/who is the most [ADJ]?

• Expressing Intention (〜つもりです): Use a non-polite verb followed by つもりです to state you plan to do something.

• Expressing "To Become" (〜になる / 〜くなる):

  • Noun / な-Adjective + になる
  • い-Adjective (stem) + くなる

• Expressing "I want to..." (〜たい): Change the ます form of a verb to 〜たい. Conjugates like an い-adjective.

• Expressing someone else wants (〜たがる): To describe observations of another person's desire.

• Stating Purpose: Use the verb stem + に + verb of motion (e.g., 行きます, 来ます).

• Expressing "Probably" (〜でしょう): Used for predictions.

• Expressing Preparation (〜ておく): Indicates something was done in preparation.

• Making Suggestions (〜たらどうですか？): Suggests trying an action.

• Polite Questions (〜んです): Makes a question less direct and more polite.

• Listing Activities Loosely (〜たり〜たりする): Lists example activities without a specific order.

• Expressing Experience (〜たことがあります): Use the past tense (た-form) of a verb followed by ことがあります.

• Expressing "Too much" (〜すぎる): Add すぎる to the verb or adjective stem.

• Giving Advice (〜方がいい): "It would be better to..."

• Multiple Reasons Why (〜し): Used to list multiple reasons for a result.

• Expressing "Seems to be..." (〜そうです): Used to describe an impression based on appearance.

• Trying To (〜てみる): Conjugate the verb to て form and add みる.

• Noun Modification: Use a plain form verb before a noun to modify it.

• Difficulty Suffix (にくい): To express that something is difficult to do, add -にくい to the verb stem (pre-ます form).

• Receiving Favors (〜てもらいます): Used when the subject receives a favor or action from someone else. The subject is the one receiving. Example: 私は先生に日本語を教えてもらいます。 (I receive teaching of Japanese from the teacher.)

• Polite Requests (〜ていただけませんか？): A very polite way to ask someone to do something. Added to the て-form of a verb. Example: このコンピュータを教えていただけませんか？ (Would you please teach me about this computer?)

• Expressing Hope (〜といいですね / 〜といいんですが):

  • For Others (〜といいですね / 〜といいね): Expresses hope for someone else. Added after a plain form verb, い-adjective, or な-adjective.
    • Example: 早くよくなるといいですね (I hope you get better soon.)
    • Example: 合格するといいですね (I hope you pass the exam.)
  • For Oneself (〜といいんですが / 〜といいんだけど / 〜といいな): Expresses hope for oneself.
    • Example: すてきな人と結婚できるといいんですが (I hope I can marry a wonderful person.)
    • Example: 給料は上がるといいんですが (I hope my salary rises.)

• Expressing "When" (〜とき): Added to the plain form of a verb to create a time-referencing clause. The tense of the verb before とき indicates the timing of the main action.

  • Present Tense + とき: The main action occurs during the action in the とき clause.
    • Example: 会社に行く時に友達を会いました。 (I met my friend on the way to work.)
  • Past Tense + とき: The main action occurs after the action in the とき clause was completed.
    • Example: パリに行った時にこのかばんを買いました。 (When I went to Paris, I bought this bag.)

Vocabulary

Nouns

• People & Titles: うんてんしゅ (driver), おとしより (elderly person), かいしゃいん (office worker), きょうだい (spiritual brother), ちょうろ (elder), 安愛がかり (あんないがかり) - Greeter, お金持ち (rich person)
• Places: おうこくかいかん (Kingdom Hall), くうこう (airport), こうえん (park), しやくしょ (city hall), としょかん (library), びじゅつかん (art museum), ゆうびんきょく (post office)
• Time & Frequency: あさって (day after tomorrow), いちにちじゅう (all day), おととい (two days ago), こんど (next time), しょうがつ / しんねん (New Years), まいしゅう (every week), 将来 (しょうらい) - near future
• Food & Drink: ごはん (rice/meal), しお (salt), すきやき (sukiyaki), やきにく (BBQ), やしょく (late night snack), 洋食 (ようしょく) - Western food
• Objects & Concepts: いさん (heritage), えんぴつ (pencil), かばん (bag), くるま (car), けいたい (cell phone), しごと (work), しつもん (question), せいしょ (Bible), でんしゃ (train), りょこう (trip/travel), 洋食 (ようしょく) - Western food, 合格発表 (ごうかく はっぴょう) - pass exam announcement, 給料 (きゅうりょう) - salary, 実現 (じつげん) - achievement/realization, 公開講演 (こうかいこうえん) - public talk, 緊張 (きんちょう) - nervousness

Verbs

• あう (会う) - To meet
• あるく (歩く) - To walk
• いく (行く) - To go
• うんてんする (運転する) - To drive
• およぐ (泳ぐ) - To swim
• かう (飼う) - To keep (a pet)
• きく (聴く) - To listen
• する (suru) - To do
• たべる (食べる) - To eat
• でかける (出かける) - To go out
• はなす (話す) - To speak
• まつ (待つ) - To wait
• よむ (読む) - To read
• 差 (さ) - Range (suffix for adjectives)
• 安愛する (あんないする) - To guide
• 届ける (とどける) - To deliver/forward
• 説明する (せつめいする) - To explain
• 診る (みる) - To examine (medical)
• 探す (さがす) - To look for
• 連れていく (つれていく) - To bring someone, 出来る (できる) - to be able to, 昇進する (しょうしん する) - to be promoted, 出世する (しゅっせ する) - to be promoted (more impactful)
• 差 (さ) - Range (suffix for adjectives)
• 安愛する (あんないする) - To guide
• 届ける (とどける) - To deliver/forward
• 説明する (せつめいする) - To explain
• 診る (みる) - To examine (medical)
• 探す (さがす) - To look for
• 連れていく (つれていく) - To bring someone

Adjectives

• い-Adjectives: あたらしい (new), あつい (hot), いそがしい (busy), おいしい (delicious), おおきい (big), さむい (cold), ちいさい (small), むずかしい (difficult), やさしい (easy/kind), やすい (cheap)
• な-Adjectives: かんたん (easy), きれい (pretty/clean), げんき (healthy), しずか (quiet), じょうず (skilled), すき (likeable), べんり (convenient), ゆうめい (famous)
• Like/Dislike Scale: 大好き (love) > 好き (like) > 嫌い (dislike) > 大嫌い (hate)

Adverbs & Expressions

• あまり + negative - Not often
• じつは - Actually
• ずっと - Much / A lot
• ぜんぜん + negative - Not at all
• たくさん - A lot
• ときどき - Sometimes
• ゆっくり - Slowly
• 喜んで (よろこんで) - With joy/pleasure

Phrases & Greetings

• おはよう - Good morning

• よろしくお願いします - Nice to meet you

• おだいじに - Take care (when someone is sick)

• ただいま - I'm home

• おかえり - Welcome back

• いただきます - Said before eating

• おなかがすきます - I'm hungry

• のどがかわきました - I'm thirsty