N2 Grammar

Mastering 〜あるいは: A Formal Conjunction and Adverb for N2 Learners

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “Or” (as a conjunction) or “perhaps/possibly” (as an adverb). 🎯 Primary Function To connect two or more alternatives, similar to 「または」, often in more formal contexts. It can also introduce a possibility. 📋 Grammar Structure [Noun/Noun Phrase] あるいは [Noun/Noun Phrase] [Clause/Phrase] あるいは [Clause/Phrase] あるいは [Sentence/Clause] (…or […]

N2 Grammar

Mastering ~あげく (~ageku): Expressing Negative Outcomes After Effort

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “in the end,” “after much,” “after doing X for a long time, Y happened (negative outcome)” 🎯 Primary Function To indicate that a negative or undesirable result occurred after a lengthy process, repeated action, or much effort. It often carries a nuance of frustration or disappointment.

N4 Grammar

Mastering づらい (Zurai): Expressing Difficulty & Reluctance in Japanese (JLPT N4)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning Difficult to do; hard to do; unpleasant or painful to do. 🎯 Primary Function To express that an action is difficult, unpleasant, or painful to perform, often due to personal or internal reasons (physical state, emotional state, etc.), as opposed to external, objective difficulty. 📋 Grammar

N4 Grammar

全然〜ない: Mastering Emphatic Negation in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “not at all”, “completely not”, “absolutely not” 🎯 Primary Function To strongly emphasize the negation of a verb, i-adjective, na-adjective, or noun. 📋 Grammar Structure 全然 + Negative form of Verb/い-adjective/な-adjective/Noun Verb: 全然 + Verb ない form / ません form い-adjective: 全然 + い-adjective くない form

N4 Grammar

Mastering ぜひ (zehi): Adding Earnestness and Invitation to Your Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning By all means; definitely; certainly; please do. 🎯 Primary Function To add emphasis to a request, invitation, recommendation, or personal desire, making it sound earnest and strong. 📋 Grammar Structure ぜひ + [Verb in 〜てください, 〜たい, 〜ましょう, Verb-stem + に行く/来る, etc. form] ぜひ is an adverb

N4 Grammar

Expressing Your Intentions: Understanding ~ようと思う (You to Omou)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning Means ‘I think I will…’, ‘I am thinking of…’, or ‘I have decided to…’. 🎯 Primary Function To express the speaker’s own intention or decision regarding a future action. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb (Volitional form) + と 思う (to omou) 🎭 Usage Contexts 🏢 Formal Situations

N4 Grammar

Mastering ようにする (you ni suru): Expressing Effort and Habit in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning To make an effort to do something; to try to do something (regularly or as a goal). 🎯 Primary Function Expresses a conscious effort or a resolution to perform an action or to make something happen. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb Plain Form (Dictionary Form or Negative

N4 Grammar

Master JLPT N4 Grammar: ようになる (You ni naru) – Expressing Change and Ability

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning To come to be able to do something, to come to do something (as a habit), to come to be in a certain state. 🎯 Primary Function Indicates a change in state, ability, or habit that occurs gradually over time as a result of practice, effort,

N4 Grammar

Mastering ように / ような (You ni / You na) | JLPT N4 Grammar

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “like”, “as if”, “so that”, “in order to”, “seems like” 🎯 Primary Function To express comparison (like, as if), purpose or goal (so that), indirect requests/instructions, wishes, or appearance/state (seems/looks like). 📋 Grammar Structure Verb Plain Form (辞書形, ない形, た形, なかった形) + ように / ような い-adjective

N4 Grammar

Mastering よう: Expressing What You See and Think (JLPT N4)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning This pattern primarily means “seems like,” “appears that,” or “looks like,” used for expressing conjecture or inference based on observation. It is also used to mean “like” or “as if” for making comparisons. 🎯 Primary Function To express a speaker’s conjecture or impression based on what

N4 Grammar

Unlock ~そうだ! Learn How to Talk About What You See (JLPT N4 Grammar)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning To express that something “looks like” or “seems” a certain way, based on direct observation, especially visual. 🎯 Primary Function To make a conjecture or describe the appearance of something based on immediate sensory information. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb ます-stem + そうだ い-adjective (remove い) +

N4 Grammar

Understanding ~予定だ (Yotei da): Expressing Plans in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning To express a plan, a schedule, or an expectation that something will happen. 🎯 Primary Function To state predetermined plans, schedules, or arrangements. It indicates a higher degree of certainty or a fixed arrangement compared to simple intentions. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb Plain Form + 予定だ

N4 Grammar

Comparing Things: Mastering ~より (yori)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “than” 🎯 Primary Function Used to indicate the standard of comparison when comparing two things (A is more X *than* B). 📋 Grammar Structure [Noun 1] は [Noun 2] より [Adjective/Verb] です/ます。 OR [Noun 1] より [Noun 2] の方が [Adjective/Verb] です/ます。 🎭 Usage Contexts 🏢 Formal

N4 Grammar

Finally! Mastering やっと (yatto) in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning The basic meaning of やっと is ‘finally’ or ‘at last’. It is used to express that something was achieved or completed after a long time, difficulty, or effort. 🎯 Primary Function Its primary function is to act as an adverb, modifying verbs, adjectives, or sometimes entire

N4 Grammar

Mastering やすい (yasui): Easy to Do Things in Japanese (JLPT N4)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning “Easy to do” or “prone to happen” 🎯 Primary Function Indicates that an action is easy to perform, or that something is likely to become a certain way or happen. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb ます-stem + やすい 🎭 Usage Contexts 🏢 Formal Situations Can be used

N4 Grammar

Highlighting Contrast: Understanding 「は〜が… は」

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning Used to present two contrasting pieces of information, often about the same subject or two related subjects. 🎯 Primary Function To show a clear contrast or comparison, highlighting distinct characteristics or situations. 📋 Grammar Structure [Noun 1] は [Phrase A] が、[Noun 2 (or omitted if Noun

N4 Grammar

Mastering the Passive Form (受身形 – Ukemi-kei) in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning The passive voice in Japanese, where the subject receives the action of the verb. 🎯 Primary Function To shift focus from the doer of the action to the receiver, to express suffering or inconvenience caused by an action (迷惑の受身), to report facts or describe events where

N4 Grammar

Mastering って (~tte): Sounding Natural in Casual Japanese Conversation (JLPT N4 Grammar)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning A casual particle primarily used for quoting or reporting what someone said or what you heard. 🎯 Primary Function To informally report information obtained from someone else or state something you heard/read. 📋 Grammar Structure Plain form of Verb/い-Adjective/な-Adjective/Noun + って * Verb (Plain): 行くって (iku

N4 Grammar

Keep Going! Mastering the Japanese Grammar Pattern ~続ける (~tsuzukeru)

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning To continue doing something; to keep doing something. 🎯 Primary Function Expresses that an action started at some point in the past or present is still ongoing or will be continued without interruption. 📋 Grammar Structure Verb stem (ます form without ます) + 続ける (つづける) 🎭

N4 Grammar

Mastering ところ (Tokoro): Expressing Timing in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Template Meaning & Usage ✨ Basic Meaning ところ literally means ‘place’ or ‘spot’. However, in this grammatical pattern, it functions as a noun indicating a ‘point’, often referring to a point in time or a state/situation. 🎯 Primary Function To express the timing or stage of an action or event. It shows whether

Scroll to Top