The learning path
All 171 grammar topics in the order in which they support one another — numbered from 1 to 171.
Your progress at a glance
Your progress at a glanceEach petal is a category: easy topics on the inside, hard ones on the outside. Tap a petal to see only its topics.
Where are you right now?
- N5The scripts, polite sentences, the essential particles.
- Words first · 10 · 1/3Words first · 10 · 2/3Words first · 8 · 3/3HiraganaForty-six signs that can write every sound of Japanese, and two small marks that nearly double them.
- Words first · 8 · 1/3Words first · 8 · 2/3Words first · 6 · 3/3KatakanaThe same sounds as hiragana in a sharper hand, used for loanwords, foreign names and emphasis.
- Words first · 8 · 1/4Words first · 8 · 2/4Words first · 8 · 3/4Words first · 8 · 4/4Kanji and their readingsCharacters that carry meaning, most with a native reading and a Chinese-derived one, and furigana to say which.
- Words first · 10 · 1/3Words first · 10 · 2/3Words first · 8 · 3/3Long vowels and small kanaIn Japanese a sound held for one beat longer is a different word, and the spelling shows every beat.
- Words first · 10 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2X は Y です: X is YThe topic, then は, then what it is, then です.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 8 · 2/2は and が: topic and subjectは sets up what you are talking about; が picks out who or what does something or is somewhere.
- Words first · 10 · 1/2Words first · 10 · 2/2The three verb groupsEvery verb belongs to one of three groups, and the group decides every form it takes.
- Words first · 10 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2i-adjectivesAn adjective that ends in い, goes straight before a noun and can end a sentence on its own.
- Words first · 9Questions with かAdd か to a statement, put the question word where the answer will go, and nothing else moves.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2てください: asking someone to do somethingThe te-form plus ください asks someone to do something; ないでください asks them not to.
- Words first · 8 · 1/3Words first · 8 · 2/3Words first · 6 · 3/3Giving a reason with から and のでThe reason comes first, then から or ので, then what follows from it.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2を: the object and the pathを marks what an action is done to — and the space a movement passes through or leaves.
- Words first · 6Is not, was and was notじゃありません or ではありません for "is not", でした for "was", and the two put together for "was not".
- Words first · 7Wanting to do: たいたい on the ます-stem says that you want to do something, and it conjugates like an i-adjective.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2The ます-formThe polite form of every verb, for habits, for now and for the future.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2に: time, goal, locationに points at a target: a moment, a destination, the place where something is, or the person who receives.
- Words first · 3の between two nounsA の B: the B that belongs to, comes from or is a kind of A — always in that order.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2na-adjectivesAn adjective that behaves like a noun: な before a noun, だ or です at the end.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2で: place of action, and meansで marks where an action takes place, the means it uses, what something is made of, and a cause.
- Words first · 6も: also, too, neitherも replaces は, が or を and adds "also"; も…も means "both", and with a negative "neither".
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2Polite past and invitationsChange the end of ます to talk about the past, to suggest and to invite.
- Words first · 8ている: ongoing action or stateている describes an action going on now, or the state that a finished change has left behind.
- Words first · 7But: が and けどが and けど join two clauses that pull in different directions — and both can also just open a topic softly.
- Words first · 7でしょう and だろう: probablyA plain form plus でしょう: the speaker thinks it is probably so.
- Words first · 7This, that and whichこれ, それ, あれ and どれ stand alone; この, その, あの and どの need a noun after them.
- Words first · 6へ (towards) and と (and, with)へ points the way; と joins a complete list of nouns or names the person you do something with.
- Words first · 9Past and negative of adjectivesAn i-adjective changes its own ending; a na-adjective changes the だ or です after it.
- Words first · 9Here, there and whereここ, そこ, あそこ and どこ for places, こちら for the polite version, and positions built with の.
- Words first · 8 · 1/2Words first · 8 · 2/2From, until, by: から, まで, までにから is the starting point, まで the end point, and までに the deadline before which something happens.
- Words first · 8Going somewhere to do somethingThe ます-stem plus に before a verb of motion says what you are going, coming or returning to do.
- Words first · 7There is: ある and いるある for things, いる for people and animals — and two word orders, depending on what is new.
- Words first · 2Wanting things: ほしいほしい says that you want a thing; wanting to do something is たい.
- Words first · 10や, とか, など: incomplete listsや and とか give examples from a longer list; など says "and so on".
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2てから and て: one after anotherA string of te-forms tells actions in order; てから insists that the second waits for the first.
- Words first · 9And, then, but, so: joining sentences in speechFour words at the start of a sentence link it to the one before: そして, それから, でも and だから.
- Words first · 5Counting things: countersA number never stands alone before a noun: it takes a counter for the kind of thing, and the pair usually follows the noun.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2Comparing thingsA Japanese adjective has no comparative form: より, のほうが and いちばん do the work.
- Words first · 2The te-formOne form that links verbs, asks politely and carries a dozen later patterns, built by rules that depend on the last kana.
- Words first · 5Sentence endings: ね, よ, よねね looks for agreement, よ tells the listener something new, and よね checks that you both know it.
- Words first · 6Times, days and dates in a sentenceA clock time, a weekday or a date takes に; words such as today and tomorrow do not; ごろ is "about" for a point in time, ぐらい for an amount.
- N4The te-form, plain form, requests and reasons.
- Words first · 6Okurigana and words written in kanaWhere a word stops being kanji and starts being kana, and why some words are written in kana altogether.
- Words first · 1Punctuation, spacing and directionA full stop that is a small circle, quotation marks that are corners, no spaces, and a page that can run top to bottom.
- Words first · 6A clause in front of a nounJapanese has no who, which or that: a plain-form clause simply stands in front of the noun it describes.
- Words first · 9The dictionary formThe form a verb has in the dictionary — and in casual speech, in front of nouns and inside most grammar patterns.
- Words first · 5May and must not: てもいい, てはいけないFour patterns built on te-forms that allow, forbid, excuse and oblige.
- Words first · 10Wanting somebody to do it: てほしいThe te-form plus ほしい says that you want somebody else to do something — or, with ないで, not to.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2Conditional と: wheneverA, と, B: whenever A happens, B follows by itself.
- Plain and polite styleEvery sentence chooses a style, and the choice says how close you are to the listener.
- Words first · 10Verbs as nouns: の and ことA particle needs a noun, so a verb that is liked, forgotten or heard first becomes one with の or こと.
- Words first · 6Adverbs (く, に) and なる (become)く turns an i-adjective into an adverb, に does the same for a na-adjective, and both combine with なる for change.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2あげる, くれる, もらう: who gives to whomあげる gives away from me, くれる gives towards me, もらう is receiving — and "me" includes my own people.
- Words first · 4かもしれない: mightA plain form plus かもしれない: it is possible, but far from sure.
- Words first · 10ことがある: sometimes; have everAfter the dictionary form ことがある means "sometimes"; after the た-form it means "have ever".
- Words first · 2Wondering aloud: かな and かしらかな turns a statement into a question asked half to yourself: "I wonder…". かしら is an older, softer variant.
- Words first · 2The plain negativeHow to say "not" in plain speech: the a-row of a う-verb, the stem of a る-verb, and ない.
- Words first · 8てしまう: finished, or regrettedてしまう marks an action as completely finished — and often as something the speaker wishes had not happened.
- Words first · 10And what is more: 〜し〜しし after a clause adds one reason to another — "and besides" — and leaves room for more.
- Words first · 8Other people's wishes: たがる and ほしがるたがる and ほしがる describe what somebody else visibly wants, and they conjugate as う-verbs.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2The passiveA new ending on the verb, the doer marked with に, and the person or thing affected as the topic.
- Words first · 7Conditional ば: ifA conjugated form that puts the weight on the condition: if A, then B.
- Words first · 5Honorific verbsSpecial verbs that raise the person who acts — used for others, never for yourself.
- Words first · 5Explaining: のです and んですんです presents a sentence as an explanation — of something seen, asked about or about to be asked — and turns a question into "what is going on?".
- Words first · 2The plain pastThe te-form with た in place of て — the casual past, and the base of a whole family of patterns.
- Words first · 8のに: although, with a complaintのに joins what should have happened to what did, and lets the speaker's surprise or annoyance show.
- Words first · 10てある: left that way on purposeてある describes a state that somebody brought about deliberately, usually as a preparation.
- Words first · 2Linking adjectives with くて and でくて and で join an adjective to what follows, where English says "and".
- Words first · 7てあげる, てくれる, てもらう: doing favoursThe three giving verbs after a te-form say who did a favour for whom.
- Words first · 4はず and はずがない: should be, cannot beSomething the speaker expects to be true, because the facts point that way.
- Words first · 5When: ときとき is a noun meaning "time"; the tense in front of it says before or after, not past or present.
- Words first · 3Intentions and plans: つもり and よていつもり states what a person intends to do; よてい states what has been arranged.
- Words first · 8たら: if, when, onceThe plain past plus ら: once A has happened, B.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2Humble verbsSpecial verbs that lower you and your side, so that the other person stands higher.
- Words first · 4The potential formOne change for "can": the e-row plus る for a う-verb, られる for a る-verb, and できる for する.
- Words first · 10During, while: あいだ and あいだにあいだ is a stretch of time that lasts the whole way through; あいだに is a point somewhere inside it.
- Words first · 6だけ, しか and のみ: onlyだけ states a limit neutrally; しか with a negative verb stresses that it is not much; のみ is the written form.
- Words first · 7ておく: doing something in advanceておく means doing something now so that it is ready later — or leaving something as it is.
- Words first · 5Before and after: まえに, あとで and てからBefore takes the dictionary form, after takes the た-form, whatever the tense of the sentence.
- Words first · 1The volitional formThe plain counterpart of ましょう: let's do it, or I think I will.
- Words first · 3Thinking of doing, trying to doThe volitional plus とおもう says what you are thinking of doing; plus とする, what somebody tries or is about to do.
- Words first · 9なら: if that is the caseTakes up what was just said and comments on it: if that is the case, then.
- Words first · 10Honorific pattern: お〜になるAny verb without a special honorific can be made one with お, the ます-stem and になる.
- Words first · 7Two things at once: ながらThe ます-stem plus ながら: one person doing two things, with the main one at the end.
- Words first · 3Too much, easy to, hard toすぎる says "too", やすい and にくい say "easy to" and "hard to", and all three attach to a stem.
- Words first · 8さしあげる, くださる, いただく: giving with respectWhen a superior, a customer or a stranger is involved, each giving verb has a respectful partner.
- Words first · 4そうだ for hearsay: I hear thatA complete plain form plus そうです: passing on what you heard or read.
- Words first · 4てみる: trying something to seeてみる means doing something to find out what it is like — not trying hard to manage it.
- Words first · 3Listing actions: たり〜たりするTwo or more たり-forms give examples of what someone does, and する at the end carries the tense.
- Words first · 10Commands and prohibitionsThe blunt command, the dictionary form plus な for "don't", and the firmer but gentler なさい of parents and teachers.
- Words first · 4Indirect questions: か and かどうかA question in the plain form plus か can sit inside a larger sentence; かどうか is "whether or not".
- Words first · 4ことにする and ことになる: decisionsことにする reports your own decision; ことになる reports one made by others or by circumstances.
- Words first · 3The causativeOne ending for both "make somebody do" and "let somebody do" — the situation decides which.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2ても and でも: even ifThe te-form plus も: even if A, B still happens.
- Words first · 8Humble pattern: お〜するお, the ます-stem and する: something you do for somebody you respect.
- Words first · 2Saying and thinking: と and ってと marks what was said or thought; the quoted clause keeps its own tense and, if indirect, the plain form.
- Words first · 8ていく, てくる: direction and changeていく points away from the speaker and on into the future; てくる points towards the speaker and up to now.
- Words first · 8Transitive and intransitive pairsMany verbs come in pairs: one for doing something to a thing, one for the thing happening by itself.
- Words first · 4に or で: which verbs take whichSome verbs place someone or something at a point and take に; others describe an activity and take で — and English gives no clue which.
- Words first · 3ために: in order to; because ofAfter a dictionary form, ために is a purpose you work towards; after a past form or a noun, it can also be a cause.
- Words first · 3Looks like: そうそう on a stem says how something looks, or what looks about to happen, judged by the eye.
- Words first · 2Asking for a favour: てくれませんか, ていただけませんかA giving verb turned into a negative question makes a request — and the more indirect it is, the politer.
- Words first · 3ようだ and みたいだ: it seems, it looks likeA judgement from what you yourself see or feel — and the word for like.
- Words first · 7So that: ように and ようにするように aims at a state you can only bring about indirectly; ようにする is making a habit or an effort of something.
- Words first · 3Giving advice: たほうがいいThe た-form plus ほうがいい says "you had better"; the ない-form plus ほうがいい says "you had better not".
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 5 · 2/2In case of: ばあい(は)ばあいは means "in the event that": the conditional of instructions, notices and rules.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 8 · 2/2ございます and the formal registerThe most formal way to say "there is" and "is" — and the vocabulary that comes with it.
- Words first · 6ないで and なくて: without, because notないで says how something is done or what is done instead; なくて gives a reason.
- Words first · 1Start, finish, keep on: compound verbsA second verb on the ます-stem says where in the action you are: starting, finishing, carrying on, or bursting into it.
- Words first · 4ようになる: come to, can now, no longerようになる reports that an ability, a habit or a situation has changed; なくなる reports that it has stopped.
- N3Passive, causative, conjecture, polite language.
- Words first · 7わけだ: that explains itわけだ draws a conclusion, and its two negatives mean very different things.
- Words first · 5ところ: about to, doing, just didところ pins an action to one moment: just before it, in the middle of it, or just after it.
- Words first · 9うちに: while it lastsDo something inside a window of time before it closes — or notice what changed while you were inside it.
- Words first · 3ばかり: only just, and nothing butAfter the た-form ばかり means "only just"; after a noun or a て-form it means "nothing but".
- Words first · 4The suffering passiveA passive built to say that somebody was put out by what happened — even when the verb has no object.
- Words first · 2ば〜ほど: the more, the moreA word in its ば-form, the same word again, then ほど: as one thing grows, so does another.
- Words first · 4ずに: without doingずに is a slightly more formal ないで: one thing happens without another happening first.
- Words first · 4は and が in depthは also contrasts, が also means "it is this one", and inside a clause the subject takes が.
- Words first · 5らしい: apparently, and typical ofA plain form plus らしい: it seems so, from what I have heard or gathered.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2として: in the role ofA noun plus として says in what role, capacity or status something is done or seen.
- Words first · 7について and にかんして: what it is aboutについて marks what you talk, think or write about; にかんして is its more formal twin.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2によって: depending on, by, because ofによって names what something depends on, who made or did it, or what caused it.
- Words first · 3にとって: for, from the view ofにとって says from whose point of view a judgement holds: important to me, hard for children.
- Words first · 10ものだ and もの: should, used to, becauseものだ states how things naturally are or used to be; ものの means "although"; a final もの gives a reason.
- Words first · 1Being made to do somethingCausative plus passive: somebody made me do it, and I did not choose to.
- Words first · 3と, ば, たら, なら side by sideFour ways to say if, and a short procedure for choosing the right one.
- Words first · 4かわりに: instead, and in returnかわりに means "instead of" or "on behalf of" — and after a clause, "in return for".
- Words first · 5ほど and くらい: about, so … thatほど and くらい measure extent: "about", "so … that", and "not as … as".
- Words first · 6おかげで and せいで: thanks to, because ofBoth name a cause; おかげで is grateful for a good result, せいで blames a bad one.
- Words first · 4まま: just as it is, left that wayまま says that a state was left unchanged while something else happened — often a state that should have changed.
- Words first · 5たとたん(に): the moment thatたとたん says that the instant one thing happened, something else happened — usually by surprise.
- Words first · 10っぽい, がち, ぎみ: -ish, prone to, a touch ofっぽい says something looks or feels like X, がち that it tends to happen, and ぎみ that there is a slight touch of it.
- Words first · 2さえ, こそ, でも and なんか: words of emphasisさえ is "even" for an extreme case, こそ is "this one and no other", でも is a softer "even" or "something like", and なんか plays something down.
- Words first · 6Must be: にちがいない and にきまっているTwo ways to say that something must be so: one considered, one emphatic.
- Words first · 3べき: ought to, shouldべきだ states what is right or proper — an opinion about duty, firmer than advice.
- Words first · 5とおり(に): just as, exactly asとおり(に) means "in the same way as": as written, as planned, as you said.
- Words first · 5させてください: let me do itThe causative turned round: asking to be allowed to act, and announcing it humbly.
- Words first · 6くせに: even though — and that annoys meくせに is のに with an accusation in it: somebody does something they have no business doing.
- Words first · 5てたまらない, てしかたがない: unbearably, terriblyThe te-form plus たまらない or しかたがない says that a feeling or sensation is so strong you can hardly bear it.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2につれて, にしたがって: as one thing changesにつれて and にしたがって link two changes: as the first goes on, the second goes along with it.
- Words first · 6わりに and にしては: for, consideringわりに(は) and にしては say "considering": the result is better or worse than the starting point would lead you to expect.
- N2Stance, written style, politeness at work.
- Words first · 6 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2にもかかわらず: despiteA formal "despite": something should have stopped the result, and it did not.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 8 · 2/2にもとづいて: based onAn action that follows a law, a set of data or an experience, and does not depart from it.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2にたいして: towards, whereas, perOne phrase that aims an attitude at a target, sets two facts against each other, or gives a ratio.
- Words first · 10 · 1/3Words first · 10 · 2/3Words first · 9 · 3/3The である styleThe voice of essays, reports and newspapers: plain verbs, and である where speech has だ or です.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2をはじめ: starting withName the best-known member of a group, then the group itself.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2ものの: althoughGrant the first fact in full, then admit that it did not lead where it should have.
- Words first · 5わけにはいかない: cannot in good conscienceNot "cannot" for lack of ability, but "cannot" because it would not be right.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 6 · 2/2ざるをえない: no choice but toA formal "I have no choice": circumstances force an action the speaker would rather avoid.
- Words first · 9ばかりか and ばかりでなく: not onlyName one thing, then add a second that goes further.
- Words first · 10 · 1/2Words first · 10 · 2/2いっぽう: whereas; more and moreOne word with three jobs: a contrast inside a sentence, a change of subject between sentences, and a trend that only goes one way.
- Words first · 10からこそ: precisely becausePut a reason in the spotlight: this, and nothing else, is why.
- Words first · 9 · 1/2Words first · 9 · 2/2Written linking: the ます-stemIn writing, a clause often ends on the bare stem and a comma, where speech would use the te-form.
- Words first · 10にかぎらず, にかぎる: not only; the bestOne verb, "to limit", in three phrases: not limited to, limited to, and the best there is.
- Words first · 8 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2とともに: together with; in step withA formal "with": beside a companion, in step with a change, or at the same moment as another action.
- Words first · 6しだい: depending on, and as soon asWhat a result depends on, and what will happen the moment something is done.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2Keigo at workInside and outside: your boss is honoured in the office and humbled on the phone to a client.
- Words first · 9うえで: after doing; when doingAfter a た-form: do this first, then the next thing on that basis. After a dictionary form: in the course of doing something.
- Words first · 8つつ and つつある: while; in progressA written ながら, a concessive "even while", and a change that is under way.
- Words first · 5いじょう(は), からには: now that, sinceいじょうは and からには mean "now that this is so": a fact that leaves only one proper course of action.
- Words first · 8おそれがある: there is a risk thatおそれがある warns that something bad may happen: the formal language of forecasts, notices and reports.
- Words first · 7ず and ずに in written JapaneseAn old negative that writing still uses to join clauses: "did not …, and" — plus the fixed phrases built on it.
- Words first · 5かねない and かねる: could well; cannotかねない warns that something bad could well happen; かねる is the polite "I am unable to".
- Words first · 9におうじて, にともなって: in line withにおうじて adjusts something to match a variable; にともなって says that one change brings another with it.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2にわたって: across, throughoutにわたって says that something covers the whole of a long period or a wide area.
- Words first · 7 · 1/2Words first · 7 · 2/2をめぐって: over, surroundingをめぐって names the issue at the centre of a dispute, debate or competition.
- Words first · 5どころか: far from it, let aloneどころか rejects the first idea and replaces it with something stronger — usually the opposite, or less than the least.
- Words first · 7からといって: just becauseからといって rejects a conclusion that seems to follow: "just because A, it does not mean B".
- Words first · 10ことから: from the fact thatことから gives a fact as evidence for a conclusion — or as the origin of a name.
- Words first · 8 · 1/2Words first · 8 · 2/2Written connectivesSix words that open a sentence and tell the reader how it stands to the one before.
- Words first · 9にさいして, にあたって: on the occasion ofにさいして and にあたって mark a special occasion — a start, an event, a decision — and what is done in view of it.
- Words first · 8をとわず: regardless ofをとわず says that a difference does not matter: open to all, whatever the age, the season or the experience.
- Words first · 8がたい: hard to bring oneself toがたい on the ます-stem says that something is emotionally or morally almost impossible: hard to believe, hard to forgive.
The finish: the whole grammar
171 topics, from the first sentences to the finishing touches.
How to read the path. Every dot is a grammar topic; a click opens it. The colour of a dot is its category, the colour of the path is the difficulty — green and easy at the top, berry red and hard at the bottom. Within a level the categories follow one another, but you need not take them in order: you can work on a tense and on a topic from another category side by side.
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