JLPT N3 Grammar List
Complete collection of grammar points for intermediate Japanese learners
Master JLPT N3 Grammar!
This guide covers all the grammar points you need to study for the JLPT N3 exam. It is designed for learners moving from basic to intermediate Japanese.
Although there is no official grammar list for N3, this collection includes grammar points that frequently appear on past exams and study materials.
Lessons are arranged in romaji alphabetical order for quick access, and each grammar entry comes with explanations and example sentences.
182+ Grammar Lessons
N3 JLPT Level
Intermediate Difficulty
📘 Tip: Each grammar lesson provides structure breakdowns, usage guides, and practical examples to reinforce learning.
| # | Lesson | 文法レッスン | Grammar Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ageru | 上げる（あげる） | to finish doing ~ |
| 2 | amari | あまり | so much… that |
| 3 | amari ni mo | あまりにも | too much; so much… that; excessively ~ |
| 4 | au | 合う（あう） | do something together |
| 5 | ba ii | ばいい | should; can; it’d be good if ~ |
| 6 | ba yokatta | ばよかった | should have; would have been better if ~ |
| 7 | ba~hodo | ば～ほど | the more… the more ~ |
| 8 | ba~noni | ば～のに | would have; should have; if only ~ |
| 9 | bakari de | ばかりで | only; just ~ (negative description) |
| 10 | bakari denaku | ばかりでなく | not only... but also; as well as ~ |
| 11 | beki da | べきだ | should do; must do ~ |
| 12 | beki dewa nai | べきではない | should not do; must not do ~ |
| 13 | betsu ni~nai | 別に～ない（べつに～ない） | not really, not particularly |
| 14 | buri ni | ぶりに | for the first time in (period of time) |
| 15 | chuu / juu | 中（ちゅう） | currently; during; at some point; throughout; before the end of ~ |
| 16 | dake | だけ | as much as ~ |
| 17 | dake de naku | だけでなく | not only… but also ~ |
| 18 | dakedo | だけど | but; however; although; regarding ~ |
| 19 | darake | だらけ | full of; covered with; a lot of (something undesirable) |
| 20 | donna ni~temo | どんなに～ても | no matter how (much) |
| 21 | doushitemo | どうしても | no matter what; at any cost; after all ~ |
| 22 | furi o suru | ふりをする | to pretend; to act as if ~ |
| 23 | futo | ふと | suddenly; accidentally; unexpectedly; unintentionally ~ |
| 24 | gachi | がち | tend to; tendency to; frequently; often; to do something easily |
| 25 | gatai | がたい | very difficult to; hard to ~ |
| 26 | gimi | 気味（ぎみ） | -like; -looking; -looked; tending to ~ |
| 27 | goto ni | ごとに | each; every; at intervals of ~ |
| 28 | hodo | ほど | degree; extent; bounds; upper limit |
| 29 | hodo~nai | ほど～ない | is not as… as ~ |
| 30 | ichido ni | 一度に（いちどに） | all at once |
| 31 | ikura~temo | いくら～ても | no matter how ~ |
| 32 | ippou da | 一方だ（いっぽうだ） | more and more; continue to ~ |
| 33 | ittai | 一体（いったい） | emphasis; what on earth; what in the world |
| 34 | janai | じゃない | maybe; most likely; confirmation of information; express surprise towards listener |
| 35 | ka nani ka | か何か（かなにか） | or something ~ |
| 36 | kakeru | かける | half-; not yet finished; in the middle of~ |
| 37 | kara~ni kakete | から〜にかけて | through; from [A] to [B] |
| 38 | kawari ni | 代わりに（かわりに） | instead of; as a substitute for ; in exchange for; in return for |
| 39 | kekka | 結果（けっか） | as a result of; after ~ |
| 40 | kekkyoku | 結局（けっきょく） | after all; eventually; in the end ~ |
| 41 | kesshite~nai | 決して～ない（けっして～ない） | never; by no means ~ |
| 42 | kirenai | 切れない（きれない） | unable to do; too much to finish/complete |
| 43 | kiri | きり | only; just; since; after ~ |
| 44 | kiru | 切る（きる） | to do something completely to the end |
| 45 | kke | っけ | a casual suffix to confirm something you are trying to remember |
| 46 | komu | 込む（こむ） | to do something for a long time or to move something inside |
| 47 | koso | こそ | for sure (emphasize preceding word); precisely; definitely ~ |
| 48 | koto | こと | (must) do |
| 49 | koto kara | ことから | from the fact that ~ |
| 50 | koto ni natteiru | ことになっている | expresses a standard, rule or expectation |
| 51 | koto wa nai | ことはない | there is no need to; (something) never happens; there is no possibility that ~ |
| 52 | koto wa~ga | ことは～が | although; but ~ |
| 53 | kurai / gurai | くらい / ぐらい | approximately; about; around; to the extent ~ |
| 54 | kuse ni | くせに | and yet; though; in spite of; despite ~ |
| 55 | maru de | まるで | as if; as though; just like ~ |
| 56 | masaka | まさか | there's no way; that's impossible; you must be joking |
| 57 | metta ni~nai | めったに～ない | hardly; rarely; seldom |
| 58 | mo~ba~mo | も～ば～も | and; also; as well; either/or; neither/nor |
| 59 | moshika shitara | もしかしたら | perhaps; maybe; perchance; by any chance ~ |
| 60 | moshimo~tara | もしも〜たら | if; in the case; supposing ~ |
| 61 | muke | 向け（むけ） | intended for; aimed at ~ |
| 62 | muki | 向き（むき） | suitable for ~ |
| 63 | mushiro | むしろ | rather; instead; better ~ |
| 64 | nagara mo | ながらも | but; although; despite ~ |
| 65 | nai koto wa nai | ないことはない | can do; is not impossible to ~ |
| 66 | naito | ないと | must do; unless/if you don't ~ |
| 67 | nakanaka | なかなか | very; quite; pretty; rather; just not ~ |
| 68 | nanka / nante / nado | なんか / なんて / など | give examples; show modesty; make light of ~ |
| 69 | naosu | 直す（なおす） | to do something again; to do over |
| 70 | naru beku | なるべく | as much as possible |
| 71 | nazenara | なぜなら | because; the reason is; if you want to know why |
| 72 | ndatte | んだって | I hear that; heard that ~ |
| 73 | ni chigai nai | に違いない（にちがいない） | I’m sure/ certain; no doubt that ~ |
| 74 | ni hanshite | に反して（にはんして） | against; contrary to; in contrast to ~ |
| 75 | ni kakete | にかけて | over (a period); through; concerning; regarding ~ |
| 76 | ni kan suru / ni kan shite | に関する / に関して（にかんする / にかんして） | about; regarding; related to ~ |
| 77 | ni kawatte / ni kawari | にかわって / にかわり | instead of; replacing; on behalf of ~ |
| 78 | ni kurabete | に比べて（にくらべて） | compared to; in comparison to ~ |
| 79 | ni nareru | に慣れる（になれる） | to be used to something |
| 80 | ni oite / ni okeru | において / における | in; at (place); regarding; as for; in relation to ~ |
| 81 | ni shitagatte | にしたがって | as; therefore; in accordance with; according to; consequently ~ |
| 82 | ni shite mo | にしても | even if; even though; regardless of ~ |
| 83 | ni shite wa | にしては | for; considering it’s (something or someone) |
| 84 | ni taishite | に対して（にたいして） | towards; against; regarding; in contrast with ~ |
| 85 | ni totte | にとって | to; for; concerning; as far as ... is concerned; regarding ~ |
| 86 | ni tsuite | について | concerning; regarding; about; on ~ |
| 87 | ni tsurete | につれて | as; in proportion to; with; as… then ~ |
| 88 | ni wa | には | for the purpose of; in order to ~ |
| 89 | ni yoru to/ni yoreba | によると /によれば | according to ~ |
| 90 | ni yotte / ni yoru | によって / による | by means of; due to; owing to; because of ~ |
| 91 | no deshou ka | のでしょうか | ask a question in a polite way |
| 92 | o chuushin ni | を中心に（をちゅうしんに） | focused on; centered on |
| 93 | o hajime | をはじめ | for example; starting with ~ |
| 94 | o komete | を込めて（をこめて） | filled with; full of |
| 95 | o tsuujite / o tooshite | を通じて / を通して（をつうじて / をとおして） | through; via; throughout; by ~ |
| 96 | okage de | おかげで | thanks to; owing to; because of ~ |
| 97 | ppanashi | っぱなし | leaving (something) on; leaving (something) still in use |
| 98 | ppoi | っぽい | seems like; somewhat; -ish; easily does; often does ~ |
| 99 | sae | さえ | even; so much as; not even |
| 100 | sae~ba | さえ～ば | if only; as long as ~ |
| 101 | sai ni | 際に（さいに） | when; at the time of; in the case of ~ |
| 102 | saichuu ni | 最中に（さいちゅうに） | while; during; in the middle of ~ |
| 103 | sara ni | さらに | furthermore; again; more and more ~ |
| 104 | sate | さて | conjunction: well; now; then ~ |
| 105 | sei de | せいで | because of; due to; as a result of ~ |
| 106 | seizei | せいぜい | at the most; at best; to the utmost |
| 107 | shibaraku | しばらく | for a moment; for a while; for the time being |
| 108 | shikanai | しかない | have no choice but ~ |
| 109 | sono tame ni | そのために | hence; for that reason; because of ~ |
| 110 | soretomo | それとも | or; or else ~ |
| 111 | sou mo nai /sou ni nai | そうもない /そうにない | very unlikely to; showing no signs of ~ |
| 112 | sude ni | すでに | something has already been done/taken place; is already the case |
| 113 | sunawachi | すなわち | in other words; namely ~ |
| 114 | suuryou + wa | 数量 + は（すうりょう + は） | at least ~ |
| 115 | ta mono da | たものだ | used to do; would often do |
| 116 | ta totan | たとたん | as soon as; just as ~ |
| 117 | tabi ni | たびに | whenever; every time ~ |
| 118 | tame ni | ために | for; in order to; for the benefit of; because of; as a result of ~ |
| 119 | tashika ni | 確かに（たしかに） | surely, certainly ~ |
| 120 | tate | たて | just done; freshly done; newly done |
| 121 | tatoe~temo | たとえ～ても | even if… is the case |
| 122 | tatoeba | 例えば（たとえば） | for example; for instance ~ |
| 123 | tatte | たって | even if; even though; no matter how ~ |
| 124 | te bakari iru | てばかりいる | only; nothing but ~ |
| 125 | te goran | てごらん | (please) try to; (please) look |
| 126 | te hajimete | てはじめて | not until; only after [x] did I |
| 127 | te kara de nai to | てからでないと | must first do; cannot do without first doing ~ |
| 128 | te shou ga nai/te shikata ga nai | てしょうがない・てしかたがない | can't help but; very; extremely ~ |
| 129 | te sumu | て済む（てすむ） | sufficient by; no problem to; resolve by ~ |
| 130 | te wa ikenai kara | てはいけないから | in order to not~; to prevent a negative situation |
| 131 | teiru baai janai | ている場合じゃない（ているばあいじゃない） | this is no time to be doing ~ |
| 132 | teki | 的（てき） | change noun into na-adjective or adverb |
| 133 | temo hajimaranai | ても始まらない（てもはじまらない） | even if you... it’s no use; there is no point to ~ |
| 134 | temo kamawanai | ても構わない（てもかまわない） | it doesn't matter if ~ |
| 135 | temo shou ga nai / temo shikata ga nai | てもしょうがない / てもしかたがない | there's no point to~; it's no use to~; it cannot be helped |
| 136 | to ieba | と言えば（といえば） | speaking of; when you talk of; when you say; if it were the case that ~ |
| 137 | to ii / tara ii | といい / たらいい | it would be nice if; should; I hope ~ |
| 138 | to ittemo | といっても | although I say; although one might say ~ |
| 139 | to iu koto da | ということだ | I heard; it means that; in other words ~ |
| 140 | to iu nowa | というのは | this means; the meaning of … is; because; that is to say ~ |
| 141 | to iu to | と言うと（というと） | speaking of; when you talk of; when you say ~ |
| 142 | to iu yori | というより | rather than ~ |
| 143 | to mieru / to miete | とみえる / とみえて | it seems that ~ |
| 144 | to sureba / to shitara / to suru to | とすれば・としたら・とすると | in the case of~; assuming~; if A then B |
| 145 | to tomo ni | と共に（とともに） | together with; at the same time as; as well as ~ |
| 146 | tochuu de / tochuu ni | 途中で/途中に（とちゅうで/とちゅうに） | on the way; in the middle of ~ |
| 147 | tokoro de | ところで | by the way ~ |
| 148 | tokoro ga | ところが | even so; however; even though ~ |
| 149 | toori ni | とおりに | in the same way as; in the way; as ~ |
| 150 | toosu | 通す（とおす） | to do until the end; to continually do; through ~ |
| 151 | toshite | として | as; in the role of ~ |
| 152 | totemo~nai | とても～ない | cannot possibly be; hardly ~ |
| 153 | towa kagiranai | とは限らない（とはかぎらない） | not necessarily so; is not always true |
| 154 | tsui | つい | accidentally; unintentionally; by mistake |
| 155 | tsui ni | ついに | finally; at last; in the end ~ |
| 156 | tsuide ni | ついでに | while, incidentally, at the same time, on the way ~ |
| 157 | tsumari | つまり | in other words; in summary; in short ~ |
| 158 | tsumori datta | つもりだった | I thought I~; I believe I~; was planning to~; was intending to ~ |
| 159 | tsumori de | つもりで | with the intention of doing ~ |
| 160 | uchi ni | うちに | while; before ~ |
| 161 | ue de | 上で（うえで） | upon; after; when; for; in order to |
| 162 | ue ni | 上に（うえに） | as well; besides; in addition to; not only… but also ~ |
| 163 | wa betsu toshite | は別として（はべつとして） | aside from; apart from; except for; whether or not ~ |
| 164 | wa mochiron | はもちろん | not to mention; not only ... but also ~ |
| 165 | wa~de yuumei | は～で有名（は～でゆうめい） | famous for ~ |
| 166 | wake da | わけだ | for that reason; no wonder; as you’d expect; the fact is; so you mean ~ |
| 167 | wake dewa nai | わけではない | it doesn’t mean that; it is not the case that; I don’t mean that; it is not true that ~ |
| 168 | wake ga nai | わけがない | there is no way that; it is impossible to ~ |
| 169 | wake niwa ikanai | わけにはいかない | must not; cannot afford to; must, have no choice but to ~ |
| 170 | wari ni | 割に（わりに） | considering ~; for ~; despite ~ |
| 171 | wazato | わざと | on purpose; intentionally ~ |
| 172 | wazawaza | わざわざ | to go to the trouble of; to go out of one's way to ~ |
| 173 | yorimo | よりも | in comparison to; rather than; more than ~ |
| 174 | you ga nai | ようがない | there is no way to; it’s impossible to ~ |
| 175 | you na ki ga suru | ような気がする（ようなきがする） | have a feeling that; feels like; seems like; think that ~ |
| 176 | you ni | ように | in order to, so that ~ |
| 177 | you ni mieru | ように見える（ようにみえる） | to look; to seem; to appear ~ |
| 178 | you to shinai | ようとしない | not try to; not make an effort to ~ |
| 179 | you to suru | ようとする | try to; attempt to; be about to ~ |
| 180 | zuni | ずに | without doing ~ |
| 181 | zuni wa irarenai | ずにはいられない | can’t help but feel; can’t help but do; must do ~ |
| 182 | zutsu | ずつ | apiece; each; at a time |