Knowledge Base

Every topic, grammar rule, and example — tap a section to expand it

👋 Greetings

—Ohayou (gozaimasu) = Good morning
—Konnichiwa = Good afternoon/Hello
—Konbanwa = Good evening
—Oyasumi (nasai) = Good night

🧮 Numbers

1 - 10

—Ichi = One
—Ni = Two
—San = Three
—Yon = Four
—Go = Five
—Roku = Six
—Nana = Seven
—Hachi = Eight
—Kyu = Nine💡 Use "ku" when talking about time
—Ju = Ten

Counters

People

Add the suffix -nin to the number.

💡

Exception for 1 or 2 people, as those have special words.

—Hitori = 1 person
—Futari = 2 people
—San-nin = 3 people
—Yo-nin = 4 people
—Go-nin = 5 people

Objects

—Hitotsu = One
—Futatsu = Two
—Mittsu = Three
—Yottsu = Four

Time

Add the suffix -ji to the number.

—Ichi-ji = One o'clock
—Ni-ji = Two o’clock
—San-ji = Three o’clock

Age

Add the suffix -sai to the number.

—Ichi-sai = 1 year old
—Ni-sai = 2 years old
—San-sai = 3 years old

Month

Add the suffix -gatsu to the number.

—Ichi-gatsu = January
—Ni-gatsu = February
—San-gatsu = Martie
—Shi-gatsu = April💡 We don't use yon here

Suffixes for 10s, 100s, 1000s and 10000s

—ju = tens (_ni-ju = twenty_)
—hyaku = hundreds (_ni-hyaku = two hundred_)
—sen = thousands (_ni-sen = two thousand_)
—man = ten thousands (_ni-man = twenty thousand_)

Tens

To count in tens add the suffix -ju

—Ju = Ten
—Ni-ju = Twenty
—San-ju = Thirty

Hundreds

To count in hundreds add the suffix -hyaku

—Hyaku = one hundred💡 You don't add ichi for 1 hundred
—Ni-hyaku = two hundreds
—San-byaku = three hundred💡 H becomes B
—Yon-hyaku = four hundred

Thousands

To count in thousand add the suffix -sen

—Sen = One thousand💡 You don't add ichi for 1 thousand
—Ni-sen = Two thousand
—San-zen = Three thousand💡 S becomes Z
—Yo-sen = Four thousand
—Has-sen = Eight thousand💡 Hachi becomes Has

Ten thousands

When reaching 10,000 you swap the suffix to -man

—Ichi-man = Ten thousand (one ten thousand)
—Ni-man = Twenty thousand (two ten thousand)
—San-man = Thirty thousand (three ten thousand)
—Ju-man = Hundred thousand (ten ten thousand)

💡

15,000 = Ichi-man go-sen

💡

1,000,000 = Hyaku-man (one hundred ten thousand)

🇯🇵 Nationality and Language

Nationality

Add the -jin suffix to the country name.

Example

Nihonjin = Japanese (person)

Amerikajin = American (person)

Igirisujin = English (person)

Rumaniajin = Romanian (person)

Language

Add the -go suffix to the country name.

Example

Nihongo = Japanese (language)

Rumaniago = Romanian (language)

💡

American and English are special cases.

To say English language you say Eigo

Quick reference

—Nihonjin = Japanese (person)
—Amerikajin = American (person)
—Igirisujin = English (person)
—Rumaniajin = Romanian (person)
—Nihongo = Japanese (language)
—Eigo = English (language)
—Rumaniago = Romanian (language)

📅 Days

Weekdays

—Getsu = Monday (Moon 🌙)
—Ka = Tuesday (Fire 🔥)
—Sui = Wednesday (Water 💧)
—Moku = Thursday (Wood 🪵)
—Kin = Friday (Gold 🥇)
—Do = Saturday (Earth 🌍)
—Nichi = Sunday (Sun ☀️)

Then add the -youbi suffix.

Example

Getsuyoubi ni = On Monday

Where ni is a particle

Kinyoubi ni sushi o tabemashita = I ate sushi on Friday

Yesterday/Today/Tomorrow/Weekend

—Yesterday = Kinou
—Today = Kyou
—Tomorrow = Ashita
—Shuumatsu = Weekend

💡

Yesterday, today and tomorrow don't need the ni particle in a sentence. However any other specific day, or when saying weekend, still needs the ni particle.

Example

_Kinou_, sushi o tabemashita = Yesterday, I ate sushi

_Kyou_, biiru o nomimasu = Today, I drink beer

_Ashita_, Nihon ni ikimasu = Tomorrow, I will go to Japan.

Shuumatsu ni, pizza tabemasu = On the weekend, I will eat pizza

❓ What, Where, When, Why, Who, How, Which

—What? = Nani? (can also use Nan desu ka?)

Kore wa nan desu ka? = What is this?

—Where? = Doko?
—When? = Itsu?
—Why? = Nande?
—Who? = Dare?
—How? = Dou? (Douyatte?)
—Which? = Dore?

`Dou` vs `Douyatte`

In English we use "How?" for both an opinion/state (_How was it?_) and also for method/process (_How do I do it?_). In Japanese it's different.

—Dou is used to ask for opinion/state
—Douyatte is used for method/process; literally comes from Dou (how) + Yatte (doing)

Example

Piza dou desu ka? = How is the pizza?

Kore wa douyatte tabemasu ka? = How do I eat this?

🤔 Nan- question blockIntermediate

—Nan-ji = What time
—Nan-gatsu = What month
—Nan-sai = What age
—Nan-nin = How many (people)
—Nan-nichi = What day

🎨 Colours

—🤍 White = Shiroi (Shiro - noun form)
—🖤 Black = Kuroi (Kuro - noun form)
—❤️ Red = Akai (Aka - noun form)
—💙 Blue = Aoi (Ao - noun form)
—💛 Yellow = Kiiroi
—💚 Green = Midori (no)
—💜 Purple = Murasaki (no)
—🧡 Orange = Orenji (no)
—🩷 Pink = Pinku (no)

💡

Why the noun forms?

If you want to say "The cat is white and black".

_Neko wa shiro to kuro desu_

We can use "to" here to connect two nouns. If we would be using the adjectives (shiroi and kuroi) we need a different glue word (-kute).

_Neko wa shirokute kuroi desu_

✔️ Markers (Glue words)Intermediate

Marker	Its main job	Example	Translation
wa	Topic	Watashi wa Tsuyoshi desu	As for me, I'm Tsuyoshi
ga	Subject	Neko ga imasu	It's a cat
o	Object	Mizu o nomimasu	Drink water
ni	Target/Time	Nihon ni ikimasu	Go to Japan
de	Location/Tool	Basu de ikimasu	Go by bus
no	Possession	Watashi no neko	My cat
to	"And" (nouns only)	Neko to inu	Cat and dog
kute	"And" (for `-i` adjectives)	Neko wa shiro _kute_ kuroi desu	The cat is white and black

Things to watch out for

`ni` vs `de`

—ni is for being somewhere (static).

Uchi ni imasu (I am at home)

—de is for doing something somewhere (active).

Uchi de tabemasu (I eat at home)

`wa` vs `ga`

—wa introduces what you're talking about.

Piza wa oishii desu = Pizza is delicous

—ga points a finger at a specific thing.

Tsuyoshi-san ga sensei desu = Tsuyoshi is the teacher (Someone asked "Who's the teacher?", and you are pointing it out)

`o`

—Always use o for the thing being "acted upon"

Sushi o tabemasu (Eat sushi)

Koohii o nomimasu. (Drink coffee.)

Quick reference

—wa = topic marker ("as for...")
—ga = subject marker (points at something specific)
—o = object marker (the thing acted upon)
—ni = direction / time marker
—de = location / tool marker
—no = possession marker ("X's Y")
—to = "and" — connects nouns only
—kute = "and" — connects -i adjectives

🏷️ Pronouns

Watashi = I...

—Watashi wa = I...
—Watashi no = My
—Watashi ni = To me / For me
—Watashi o = Me (directly)
—Watashi to = With me

Anata = You...

⚠️ In English, we say "you" constantly. In Japanese, using Anata can actually sound a bit cold, distant, or even aggressive (like you're pointing a finger).

The Golden Rule

If you know the person's name, use their name + san instead of "you."

Instead of: Anata no neko desu ka? (Is this your cat?)

Use: Tsuyoshi-san no neko desu ka? (Is this Tsuyoshi's cat?)

—Anata wa = You
—Anata no = Your
—Anata ni = To you / For you
—Anata o = You (directly)
—Anata to = With you

Kare = He...

—Kare wa = He
—Kare no = His
—Kare ni = To him
—Kare o = Him (directly)
—Kare to = With him

Kanojo = She...

—Kanojo wa = She
—Kanojo no = Her
—Kanojo ni = To her
—Kanojo o = Her (directly)
—Kanojo to = With her

We/You (plural)/They/Them

Use the suffix -tachi

—Watashi\tachi\ = We
—Anata\tachi\ = You (guys)...
—Kare\tachi\ = They/them (men or mixed group)
—Kanojo\tachi\ = They/them (women)

🧪 Verbs labIntermediate

Add the following suffixes to the verb stem.

—masu = I ...
—masen = I don't ...
—tai = I want to ...
—takunai = I don't want to ...

Example

Verb stem: iki (from the verb "iku" = "to go")

—iki\masu\ = I go
—iki\masen\ = I don't go
—iki\tai\ = I want to go
—iki\takunai\ = I don't want to go

Past tense

Add the following suffixes to the verb stem.

—mashita = Did/Have (positive form)
—masen deshita = Didn't/Haven't (negative form)

Example

Verb stem: nomi (from the verb "nomu" = "to drink")

—nomi\mashita\ = I drank / I did drink / I have drunk
—nomi\masen deshita\ = I didn't drink / I haven't drunk

💡

Think of -mashita as the "Past Tense Umbrella." It covers every version of "happened in the past".

💡

The negative past tense form is composed of two pieces:

- _masen = don't_

- _deshita = was_

Casual past tense form

This is more complicated because it depends on how the verb ends.

If it ends in...	Change it to...	Example	Past Tense
"u, tsu, ru"	-tta (small 'tsu')	Iku (Go)	Itta (Went)
"mu, bu, nu"	-nda	Nomu (Drink)	Nonda (Drank)
ku	-ita	Kaku (Write)	Kaita (Wrote)
gu	-ida	Oyogu (Swim)	Oyoida (Swam)
su	-shita	Hanasu (Speak)	Hanashita (Spoke)

🙅‍♀️ Negation (Not)Intermediate

For verbs

Add the -nai suffix (casual) or -masen suffix (polite).

Example

tabe (from the verb "taberu" = "to eat")

tabenai = I don't eat (casual)

tabemasen = I don't eat (polite)

Adjectives ending in `i`

Replace the last i with ku nai (casual) or ku arimasen (polite).

Example

_oishii_ = delicious

_oishiku nai_ = not delicious (casual)

_oishiku arimasen_ = not delicious (polite)

Nouns (or na-adjectives)

Use ja nai (casual) or ja arimasen (polite).

Example

_isha desu_ = I am a doctor

_Isha ja nai desu_ = I am not a doctor

Key phrases

—tabenai = I don't eat (casual)
—tabemasen = I don't eat (polite)
—ikimasen = I don't go (polite)
—wakaranai = I don't understand (casual)
—wakarimasen = I don't understand (polite)
—oishiku nai = not delicious
—takai ja nai = not expensive
—isha ja nai = not a doctor
—nihonjin ja nai = not Japanese

👀 sou (It looks... / It looks like...)Intermediate

If you add the suffix -sou to an adjective or a verb's stem, you can form sentences like "It looks [adjective]..." and "It looks like it's going to [verb]..."

💡

For adjectives ending in i drop the i and add sou. Oishii becomes Oishi\sou\

Example

Oishi\sou\ = It looks delicious!

Furi- (Rain) + sou = Furi\sou\ = It looks like it's going to rain.

Quick reference

—Oishisou = It looks delicious
—Furisou = It looks like it's going to rain
—Tanoshisou = It looks fun
—Yasashisou = It looks easy / It looks kind
—Samugusou = It looks cold
—Kowasou = It looks scary

🧠 GotchasIntermediate

The verb `Have`

There are two variants, Arimasu for things and Imasu for living things.

`Arimasu` (for things)

Example

• Menu arimasu ka? = Do you have a menu?

• Arimasen = We don't have it

• Arimashita ka? = Was it there?

• Iie, arimasen deshita = No, it wasn't there

`Imasu` (for living things)

Example

• Neko ga imasu ka? = Do you have a cat?

• Imasu = I have one.

• Inu ga imashita ka? = Did you have a dog?

• Iie, imasen deshita = No, I didn't have one

The `Hoshii` rule

In English, we use the verb "to want" for everything: I want a pizza, I want to sleep, I want a cat. In Japanese, you have to split your brain into two channels: Actions and Objects.

Actions

For Actions keep using the -tai suffix.

Example

_Biiru o nomitai = I want to drink a beer_

Objects

For Objects use hoshii.

Example

_Biiru ga hoshii = I want a beer_

❓ Why "ga" and not "o"?

Hoshii is an adjective so we need to use the correct marker which is "ga".

o = Action marker (used with verbs)

ga = Subject marker (used with adjectives)

`Hoshii` Conjugations

Form	Japanese	Meaning
Positive	Hoshii	I want (it)
Negative	Hoshikunai	I don't want (it)
Past	Hoshikatta	I wanted (it)
Past Negative	Hoshikunaku-natta	I stopped wanting (it)

Example

Nani ga hoshii desu ka? = What do you want?

Inu ga hoshikunai = I don't want a dog

Neko ga hoshikatta desu = I wanted a cat

Quick reference

—Arimasu = to have / to exist (things)
—Imasu = to have / to exist (living things)
—Arimasen = don't have it / it's not there (things)
—Imasen = not here / don't have it (living things)
—Hoshii = I want (object)
—Hoshikunai = I don't want (object)
—Hoshikatta = I wanted (object)
—Hoshikunaku-natta = I stopped wanting (object)

📚 Lexicon

Verbs

—Nomu = to drink (nomi-)
—Taberu = to eat (tabe-)
—Iku = to go (iki-)
—Wakarimasu = to understand (wakari-)
—Miru = to see / watch / look (mi-)
—Imasu = to be / to exist / to have ⚠️ for living things (i-)
—Arimasu = to be / to exist / to have ⚠️ for objects (ari-)

Must-know

—Kudasai = Please (asking for a physical object or asking someone to perform an action)
—Onegaishimasu = Please (asking for a service, a favor, or something abstract)
—Daijoubu desu = I'm okay / It's fine / Don't worry / No thank you (depending on the context)
—Gomen (nasai) = Sorry (I am sorry)
—Kore = Here
—Sore = There
—Chotto = A little bit
—Sukoshi = A little / A small amount / A small distance
—Itadakimasu = I humbly receive (said before a meal)
—Gochisousama = Thank you for the meal (to be more polite add deshita)

Sound like a local

—Naruhodo = "I see" / "Makes sense"

Use this when someone explains something to you

—Sugoi = Wow / Amazing
—Maji de = Seriously? / For real?

Use it as a question Maji de? or as an intensifier Maji de oishii — Seriously delicious

—Ne = ...right?

When seeking agreement Maji de oishii ne = It's seriously delicious, right?

Family

—Ani = (older) Brother
—Ane = (older) Sister
—Haha = Mother
—Chichi = Father

People

—Sensei = Teacher
—Tomodachi = Friend(s)
—Kodomo = Children
—Isha = Doctor

Other

—Atsui = Hot
—Samui = Cold
—Ima = Now (_Ima_ nan-ji desu ka? = What is the time _now_?)
—Genki = Healthy, energetic, lively, in good spirits, or just "doing well"
—Nan-nin = How many people
—Ikura desu ka? = How much it is? (in the context of price)
—Soshite = "...and then..."

Piza o tabemasu soshite biiru o nomimasu = I eat pizza and then I drink beer.

—Kasa = Umbrella
—Kaban = Bag
—Eki = Train station
—Soko = There
—Koko = Here
—Gozen = A.M.
—Gogo = P.M.
—Kara = From (time/place)
—Made = Until/To (time/place)

Knowledge Base

1 - 10

Counters

People

Objects

Time

Age

Month

Suffixes for 10s, 100s, 1000s and 10000s

Tens

Hundreds

Thousands

Ten thousands

Nationality

Example

Language

Example

Quick reference

Weekdays

Example

Yesterday/Today/Tomorrow/Weekend

Example

Dou vs Douyatte

Example

Things to watch out for

ni vs de

wa vs ga

o

Quick reference

Watashi = I...

Anata = You...

Kare = He...

Kanojo = She...

We/You (plural)/They/Them

Example

Past tense

Example

Casual past tense form

For verbs

Example

Adjectives ending in i

Example

Nouns (or na-adjectives)

Example

Key phrases

Example

Quick reference

The verb Have

Arimasu (for things)

Example

Imasu (for living things)

Example

The Hoshii rule

Actions

Example

Objects

Example

Hoshii Conjugations

Example

Quick reference

Verbs

Must-know

Sound like a local

Family

People

Other

`Dou` vs `Douyatte`

`ni` vs `de`

`wa` vs `ga`

`o`

Adjectives ending in `i`

The verb `Have`

`Arimasu` (for things)

`Imasu` (for living things)

The `Hoshii` rule

`Hoshii` Conjugations