LinguaTopic, then statement, then です
The frame is AはBです and it does the work of “A is B”. は – written with the kana ha but read wa – marks what the sentence is about, and everything after it says something about that. です closes the sentence politely and never changes for person or number: it is the same in わたしはがくせいです and in たなかさんはいしゃです. The verb-like part always comes last, and that never varies in Japanese.
| Topic | Particle | Statement | Closing |
|---|---|---|---|
| わたし | は | がくせい | です |
| たなかさん | は | いしゃ | です |
| ともだち | は | アメリカじん | です |
| あのひと | は | だれ | ですか |
You do not say わたし very often
Once the topic is clear it is simply left out. がくせいです on its own means “I am a student” if you are the one being asked about, and Japanese drops the topic far more readily than it repeats it. The word あなた for “you” is rarer still: address people by name plus さん, and never attach さん to your own name – that is the one mistake a beginner is always corrected on.
わたしはとうきょうだいがくのがくせいですI am a student at the University of Tokyo.
あのひとはだれですかWho is that person?
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| がくせい | student | いもうとはがくせいです My younger sister is a student. |
| かいしゃいん | company employee | ちちはかいしゃいんです My father is a company employee. |
| いしゃ | doctor | あのひとはいしゃです That person is a doctor. |
| にほんじん | a Japanese person | たなかさんはにほんじんです Mr Tanaka is Japanese. |
| アメリカじん | an American | トムさんはアメリカじんです Tom is American. |
| かんこくじん | a Korean | キムさんはかんこくじんです Mr Kim is Korean. |
| ともだち | friend | わたしのともだちです This is my friend. |
| だいがく | university | とうきょうのだいがく a university in Tokyo |
| ひと | person | あのひとはだれですか Who is that person? |
| さん | Mr, Ms (after a name) | やまださんはせんせいです Mr Yamada is a teacher. |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 2
- translate the sentence: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which particle marks what the sentence is about?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.