Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
Plan to; Scheduled to; Expected to
🎯 Primary Function
Expressing a pre-determined plan or schedule.
📋 Grammar Structure
Verb (Dictionary Form) + 予定だ / 予定です
Not applicable. 予定だ is primarily used with verbs and nouns.
Not applicable. 予定だ is primarily used with verbs and nouns.
Verb (Dictionary form) + 予定はない / Noun + の + 予定はない (no plan to)
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Commonly used in business reports and formal announcements to state schedules.
Informal Situations
Used among friends to discuss upcoming plans, though ‘つもり’ is also common for personal intent.
Written Language
Found in calendars, itineraries, and news reports.
Spoken Language
Used frequently when confirming times or dates of events.
💡 Common Applications
Official Schedules
Used for public transportation, company events, or official itineraries.
Example: 電車は10時に出発する予定です。 (The train is scheduled to depart at 10:00.)
Personal Plans
Used to describe fixed personal intentions that are more like a schedule than a mere thought.
Example: 週末は買い物に行く予定だ。 (I plan to go shopping this weekend.)
Third-party expectations
Used to report plans decided by others or organizations.
Example: 新製品は来月発売の予定だ。 (The new product is scheduled for release next month.)
Frequency
High
Difficulty
JLPT N4
Tag:
Example Sentences
Example #1
私は来月、日本へ行く予定です。
Furigana: わたしはらいげつ、にほんへいくよていです。
Romaji: Watashi wa raigetsu, Nihon e iku yotei desu.
English: I plan to go to Japan next month.
Example #2
会議は午後三時に終わる予定だ。
Furigana: かいぎはごごさんじにおわるよていだ。
Romaji: Kaigi wa gogo san-ji ni owaru yotei da.
English: The meeting is scheduled to end at 3 PM.
Example #3
明日は友達と映画を見る予定です。
Furigana: あしたはともだちとえいがをみるよていです。
Romaji: Ashita wa tomodachi to eiga o miru yotei desu.
English: I am planning to watch a movie with a friend tomorrow.
Example #4
新しい飛行機は来週から飛ぶ予定です。
Furigana: あたらしいひこうきはらいしゅうからとぶよていです。
Romaji: Atarashii hikouki wa raishuu kara tobu yotei desu.
English: The new airplane is scheduled to start flying next week.
Example #5
今日の午後は家で掃除をする予定だ。
Furigana: きょうのごごはいえでそうじをするよていだ。
Romaji: Kyou no gogo wa ie de souji o suru yotei da.
English: I plan to clean the house this afternoon.
Example #6
工事は八月に完成する予定です。
Furigana: こうじははちがつにかんせいするよていです。
Romaji: Kouji wa hachigatsu ni kansei suru yotei desu.
English: The construction is planned to be completed in August.
Example #7
首相は明日、アメリカを訪問する予定です。
Furigana: しゅしょうはあした、アメリカをほうもんするよていです。
Romaji: Shushou wa ashita, Amerika o houmon suru yotei desu.
English: The Prime Minister is scheduled to visit America tomorrow.
Example #8
夏休みに北海道へ行く予定はありますか？
Furigana: なつやすみにほっかいどうへいくよていはありますか？
Romaji: Natsuyasumi ni Hokkaido e iku yotei wa arimasu ka?
English: Do you have plans to go to Hokkaido during summer vacation?
Example #9
荷物は明日の朝に届く予定です。
Furigana: にもつはあしたのあさにとどくよていです。
Romaji: Nimotsu wa ashita no asa ni todoku yotei desu.
English: The package is scheduled to arrive tomorrow morning.
Example #10
今週末は特に何もする予定はありません。
Furigana: こんしゅうまつはとくになにもするよていはありません。
Romaji: Konshuumatsu wa toku ni nani mo suru yotei wa arimasen.
English: I don’t have any specific plans for this weekend.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
Use only for scheduled events.
予定 is used for human-made plans or schedules, not natural phenomena or simple predictions.
Example: 明日は雨が降る予定です (Incorrect) vs 明日は雨が降るでしょう (Correct)
Objectivity vs. Subjectivity
予定 implies a more concrete, often official or fixed arrangement than つもり (which is just internal intent).
Example: 来年、結婚するつもりです (Intent) vs 来年、結婚する予定です (Scheduled date set)
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ 会議予定だ (Kaigi yotei da)
✅ 会議の予定だ (Kaigi no yotei da)
予定 must be connected to a noun using ‘no’.
❌ 行った予定だ (Itta yotei da)
✅ 行く予定だ (Iku yotei da)
予定 is used with the dictionary form (non-past), not the past tense, even if the plan was made in the past.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Polite (desu) is very common in professional settings. plain (da) is used in news or casual notes.
Social Situations: In Japan, adhering to a ‘yotei’ (schedule) is socially important, so this grammar is crucial for social harmony and coordination.
Regional Variations: Standard across Japan.
🔍 Subtle Differences
予定だ vs つもりだ
予定 refers to a definite schedule/arrangement; つもり refers to a personal intention or desire.
When to use: Use 予定 when the time and place are likely already decided. Use つもり when it’s just what you are thinking of doing.
予定だ vs ことになっている
ことになっている emphasizes that the decision was made by some outside authority or group consensus.
When to use: Use ことになっている for rules or group decisions you might not have personal control over.
📝 Conjugation Notes
予定 is a noun, so it follows noun conjugation rules: 予定だ (plain), 予定です (polite), 予定だった (past), 予定ではありません (negative).
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
The ‘yo’ is short, and ‘tei’ has a long ‘e’ sound (yotee). Avoid stressing ‘da’ too heavily.
🧠 Memory Tips
Think of ‘Yo’ (予 – advance) and ‘Tei’ (定 – determine). It is a ‘predetermined’ event. Associate it with looking at a calendar.
Other Grammar
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