This website started as a hobby to explain photography (posts listed here), but over time expanded to provide (hopefully) useful information about Japan and the Japanese language. I also run edonoyu.com with a friend—a site that covers onsen in the Tokyo region.
Japanese Conjunctions: Or (か)
We need the か particle to form “or”. In its simplest form: お茶ちゃかコーヒー。 Tea or coffee. For more…
Despite: のに
JLPT N4. Core grammar used in both writing and conversation. The particle のに is used to express “despite”.…
Essential Conjunctions: But (が)
We form a “but” in Japanese by appending the が particle to the end of the clause. 旅行りょこうに行いきたいですが、休やすみが取とれません。…
Because (から, ので)
We have already seen one way to express a reason or cause by using the te form. 電車でんしゃが遅おくれて、会社かいしゃに遅刻ちこくしました。…
A Comprehensive Guide to the “te” Form
The te form is without doubt one of the most used and important conjugations in Japanese grammar. Unfailingly,…
The Volitional: ～よう
The volitional—or more simply the “let’s “and “shall” form—helps us create a number of different phrases. Group 1…
Expressing “Want” in Japanese (～たい)
To express the desire “to want” we take the stem of the verb (i.e. the present polite form…
Expressing the Potential (できる)
In order to express the potential in Japanese we need to alter the verb ending. The way we…
Movement Towards an Action
Movement towards action refers to sentences like the following: I am going to eat. I am coming to…
Comparisons within a Group
This phrase let’s us say things like, “Out of all my school subjects, I like history the most”.…
Embedding Questions in Sentences
We embed questions in sentences all the time by making them subordinate to the main clause, e.g. “I…
Combining Particles (への, での, との)
Like は and も, the possessive particle の can also append itself to other particles to help modify…
