Nihongo Joshi (Japanese Particles)

What are particles?

Particles are probably one of the most difficult and confusing aspects of Japanese
sentences. A particle (joshi) is a word that shows the relationship of a word, a
phrase, or a clause to the rest of the sentence. Some particles have nglish
e!uivalents. "thers have functions similar to nglish prepositions, but since they
always follow the word or words they mar#, they are post$positions. %here are also
particles that have a peculiar usage which is not found in nglish. &ost particles are
multi$functional.
The Particle "To"
Complete Listing
't connects only nouns and pronouns, never phrases and clauses. 't translates into
(and(.
Contrast
't indicates a comparison or contrast between the two nouns.
Accompaniment
't translates into (together, with(.
Change/Result
't is commonly used in the phrase () to naru(, and indicates that something reaches
a goal or new state.
Quotation
't is used before such verbs as () iu(, () omou(, () #i#u*, etc to introduce a clause
or a phrase. 't is normally preceded by a plain form of a verb.
Conditional
't is placed after a verb or an ad+ective to form a conditional. 't translates into (as
soon as,( (when,( (if,( etc. A plain form is usually used before the particle (to(.
Sound Symolism
't is used after onomatopoeic adverbs.
The Particle "!"
"irect !ject #ar$er
("( is placed after a noun, and indicates that the noun is the direct ob+ect.
Route o% #otion
,erbs such as wal#, run, pass, turn, drive, go through etc., ta#e the particle (o( to
indicate the route which the movement follows.
Point o% "eparture
,erbs such as leave, come out, get off etc., ta#e the particle (o( to mar# the place
from which one gets of or leaves.
The Particle "&o"
Possessi'e #ar$er
(No( indicates ownership or attribution. 't is similar to the nglish
(apostrophe s (-s). (
. %he final noun can be omitted if it is clear to both spea#er and listener.
eg: Are wa watashi no (kuruma) desu. = That is mine (my car).
&oun #odi%ication
%he noun before (no( modifies the noun after (no(. %his usage is similar to the
possessive, but it is seen more with compound nouns or noun phrases.
(e.g. kono hon no chosha -> the author of this book)
(No( can be used many times in one sentence. 'n this usage the order of nouns in
Japanese is the reverse of the nglish structure. %he normal Japanese order is from
large to small, or general to specific.
Apposition
(No( lin#s the noun to the appositive that follows.
Wa (S )a
Topic #ar$er and Suject #ar$er
/oughly spea#ing, (wa( is a topic mar#er, and (ga( is a sub+ect mar#er. %he topic is
often the same as the sub+ect, but not necessary. %he topic can be anything that a
spea#er wants to tal# about ('t can be an ob+ect, location or any other grammatical
element). 'n this sense, it is similar to the nglish e0pressions, (As for )( or
(Spea#ing of ).(
*asic "i%%erences *et+een )a and Wa
(1a( is used to mar# something that has already been introduced into the
conversation, or is familiar with both a spea#er and a listener. (proper nouns, genetic
names etc.) (2a( is used when a situation or happening is +ust noticed or newly
introduced. See the following e0ample.
#u$ashi mu$ashi, ojii-san ga sunde imashita. !jii-san +a totemo shinsetsu
deshita. / "nce upon a time, there lived an old man. 3e was very #ind.
'n the first sentence, (o+ii$san( is introduced for the first time. 't is the sub+ect, not
the topic. %he second sentence describes about (o+ii$san( that is previously
mentioned. ("+ii$san( is now the topic, and is mar#ed with (wa( instead of (ga.(
Wa as Contrast
4eside being a topic mar#er, (wa( is used to show contrast or to emphasi5e the
sub+ect. Particles such as (ni,( (de,( (#ara( and (made(
can be combined with (wa( (double particles) to show contrast. 1hether (wa(
indicates a topic or a contrast, it depends on the conte0t or the intonation.
)a +ith Question Words
1hen a !uestion word such as (who( and (what( is the sub+ect of a sentence, it is
always followed by (ga,( never by (wa.( %o answer the !uestion, it also has to be
followed by (ga.(
)a as 0mphasis
(2a( is used for emphasis, to distinguish a person or thing from all others. 'f a topic
is mar#ed with (wa,( the comment is the most important part of the sentence. "n
the other hand, if a sub+ect is mar#ed with (ga,( the sub+ect is the most important
part of the sentence. 'n nglish, these differences are sometimes e0pressed in tone
of voice. 6ompare these sentences.
Taro +a ga$$ou ni i$imashita. / %aro went to school.
Taro ga ga$$ou ni i$imashita. / %aro is the one who went to school.
)a in a Special Circumstance
%he ob+ect of the sentence is usually mar#ed by the particle (o,( but some verbs and
ad+ectives (e0pressing li#e7disli#e, desire, potential, necessity, fear, envy etc.) ta#e
(ga( instead of (o.(
)a in Suordinate Clauses
%he sub+ect of a subordinate clause normally ta#es (ga( to show that the sub+ects of
the subordinate and main clauses are different.
The Particle ""e"
Place o% Action
't indicates the place where an action ta#es place. 't translates into (in(, (at(, (on(,
and so on.
#eans
't indicates means, method, or instruments. 't translates into (by(, (with(, (in( (by
means of(, etc.
Totali1ing
't is placed after a !uantity, time or amount of money, and indicates an e0tent.
Scope
't translates into (in(, (among(, (within(, etc.
Time Limit
't indicates time consumed for a certain action or occurrence. 't translates into (in(,
(within(, etc.
#aterial
't indicates the composition of an ob+ect.
Re2uired Cost
't translates into (for(, (at(, etc.
Cause
't indicates a casual reason or motive for an action or occurrence. 't translates into
(due to(, (because of(, (owing to(, etc.
The Particle "&i"
3ndirect !ject #ar$er
An indirect ob+ect usually precedes a direct ob+ect. .Some Japanese verbs such as
(au (to meet)( and (#i#u (to as#)( ta#e an indirect ob+ect, though their nglish
counterparts do not.
Location o% 04istence
(Ni( is typically used with verbs such as (iru (to e0ist),( (aru (to e0ist)( and (sumu
(to live).( 't translates into (at( or (in.(
"irect Contract
(Ni( is used when a motion or action is directed at or onto an ob+ect or place.
"irection
(Ni( can be translated as (to( when indicating a destination.
Purpose
8uh.
Speci%ic Time
(Ni( is used with various time e0pressions (year, month, day, and cloc# time) to
indicate a specific point in time, and translates into (at,( (on,( or (in.( 3owever, the
e0pressions of relative time such as today, tomorrow don-t ta#e the particle (ni.(
Source
(Ni( indicates an agent or a source in passive or causative verbs. 't translates into
(by( or (from(.
&otion o% Per
(Ni( is used with fre!uency e0pressions such as per hour, per day, per person, etc.
Sentence 0nding Particles
'n Japanese, there are many particles that are added to the ends of sentences. %hey
e0press the spea#er-s emotions, doubt, emphasis, caution, hesitation, wonder,
admiration, and so on. Some sentence ending particles distinguish male or female
speech. &any of them don-t translate easily.
5a
&a#es a sentence into a !uestion. 1hen forming a !uestion, the word order of a
sentence does not change in Japanese.
5ana/5ashira
'ndicates that you are not sure about something. 't can be translated as (' wonder
)(. (9ashira ( is used only by women.
&a
(:) Prohibition. A negative imperative mar#er used only by men in very informal
speech.
(;) 6asual emphasis on a decision, suggestion or opinion.
&aa
0presses emotion, or a casual remar# of wishful thin#ing.
&e/&ee
6onfirmation. 'ndicates that the spea#er wants the listener to agree or confirm. 't is
similar to nglish e0pressions (don-t you thin# so(, (isn-t it<( or (right<(.
&o
(:) 'ndicates an e0planation or emotive emphasis. =sed only by women or children
in an informal situation.
(;) &a#es a sentence into a !uestion (with a rising intonation). 'nformal version of
() no desu #a (.
Sa
mphasi5es the sentence. =sed mainly by men.
Wa
=sed only by women. 't can have both an emphatic function and a softening effect.
6o
(:) mphasi5es a command.
(;) 'ndicates moderate emphasis, especially useful when the spea#er provides a new
piece of information.
7e
licits an agreement. =sed only by men in casual conversation among colleagues, or
with those whose social status is below that of the spea#er.
7o
mphasi5es one-s opinion or +udgment. =sed mainly by men.