Japanese particles: Information from Answers.com

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Japanese particles, joshi (助詞^?) or teniwoha (てにをは^?), are suffixes or short words in Japanese grammar that immediately follow the modified noun, verb, adjective, or sentence. Their grammatical range is varied, and can sometimes indicate feelings, assertiveness etc.

Orthography and diction

Japanese particles are written in hiragana in modern Japanese, even though some of them have kanji forms. They follow the same rules of phonetical transcription as all Japanese words, with the exception of the phonetical wa, e and o, written は (ha), へ (he) and を (wo) respectively ; note that some speakers pronounce the particle wo. These exceptions are a relic of historical kana usage.

List of particles

Preceding syntactic element	Example sentence	Translation
bakari ばかり	Translates to: "just, only, full of" Colloquially:　ばっかり bakkari, ばっか bakka
Noun	Tōkyō wa hito bakari* da.* 東京は人ばかりだ。	Tokyo is just full of people.
Verbs (ta form)	Tabeta bakari da. 食べたばかりだ。	I just ate.
Verb (te form)	Kare wa tabete bakari* iru* 彼は食べてばかりいる。	He's always eating
bakari ka ばかりか	Translates to: "not only". Accompanied by さえ sae ("but also") indicates something unusual or unexpected. Etymology: bakari + ka
Nouns	Sofu bakari ka, sōsofu sae ikite iru. 祖父ばかりか、曽祖父さえ生きている。	Not only is my grandfather living, but so is my great-grandfather.
bakashi ばかし	bakashi is another form of bakari.
dake だけ	Translates to: "only"; limit. Dake functions as a noun.
Nouns	rōmaji dake no jisho ローマ字だけの辞書。	a rōmaji-only dictionary
Verbs (volitional)	Netai dake nete mo ii. 寝たいだけ寝てもいい。	You can sleep as much as you want [to sleep].
da no だの	Translates to: "and, things like". Etymology: da (copula) + no. This particle is used far less frequently than to ka. Often has negative connotations.
Nouns, adjectives, verbs	Nattō da no, shīfūdo da no, wasabi da no — nihonshoku ga nigate da. 納豆だの、シーフードだの、わさびだの — 日本食が苦手だ。	Natto, seafood, wasabi — Japanese food isn't my thing.
darake だらけ	Translates to: "covered with". Often has negative connotations.
Nouns	Watashi no fuku wa doro darake! 私の服は泥だらけ！	My clothes are covered with mud.
de で	Etymology: Originally an alteration of ni te, later treated as a conjugation of the copula da. de can be used as "by means of"
Nouns: instrument	Jitensha de ikimashō. 自転車で行きましょう。	Let's go by bicycle.
Nouns: location	Koko de yasumitai. ここで休みたい。	I want to rest here.
Nouns: language	Nihongo de tegami wo kaita. 日本語で手紙を書いた。	I wrote the letter in Japanese.
de mo でも	Translates to: "even; or; but, however; also in" Etymology: de + mo
Nouns, particles: "even"	Uchū kara de mo Banri-no-Chōjō ga mieru. 宇宙からでも万里の長城がみえる。	Even from space you can see the Great Wall of China.
Noun: "or"	Ocha de mo, kōhī de mo, dō desu ka? お茶でも、コーヒーでも、どうですか？	How about some tea or coffee?
Noun: "also in"	Nihon de mo eigo o benkyō suru 日本でも英語を勉強する。	In Japan also, we study English.
Beginning of phrase: "but, however, even so"	De mo, watashi wa sō omowanai でも、私はそう思わない。	But I don't think so.
ni te にて	Formal version of de, functions in exactly the same way. Etymology: Case particle ni + conjunctive particle te (c.f. te form of Japanese verbs)
dokoro ka 所か	Translates to: "anything but, far from" Etymology: dokoro (tokoro: place) + ka
Nouns	Kare wa keisatsukan dokoro ka, hanzaisha da. 彼は警察官どころか、犯罪者だ。	He's anything but a policeman; he's a criminal.
e へ	Translates to: "to, in"; direction E is written with へ rather than え, reflecting old kana usage.
Nouns: direction	Nihon e yōkoso! 日本へようこそ！	Welcome to Japan!
ga ヶ	Functions as: identifier (identifies something unspecified), conjunction ("but") Ga (が or ヶ): Historical possessive used to connect nouns, most often seen in place names as ヶ
Nouns: identifier (answers a silent or asked question)	Neko ga esa o tabeta. 猫が餌を食べた。	The cat ate the catfood. [Answers: "What ate the catfood?"]
Nouns: identifier (answers a silent or asked question)	Inu ga suki. 犬が好き。	I like dogs. [Answers: What do you like?]
Noun: noun connector	wa ga kuni 我が国	my/our [collective] country
	Fujimi ga Oka 富士見が丘	Fuji View Hill
	Seki ga hara 関が原	Gateway Plains (site of the Battle of Sekigahara)
Phrases: conjunction	Inu wa suki da ga, neko wa kirai da. 犬は好きだが、猫は嫌いだ。	I like dogs but I hate cats.
hodo 程	Translates to: "as much as"; upper limit
Nouns	Kare hodo nihongo ga umakunai. 彼ほど日本語がうまくない。	My Japanese isn't as good as his
Adjectives^*	Hayai hodo ii. 早いほどいい。	The sooner, the better.
Verb	Aitsu o koroshitai hodo* kirai da* あいつを殺したいほど嫌いだ。	I hate him enough (to want) to kill him
ka か	Functions as: question denominator, alternative item conjunction, quotation expressing doubt; "whether," especially when used with dō ka ("or not").
Nouns, verbs: listing alternatives	Kore ka, sore ka, dotchika erande yo. これか、それか、どっちか選んでよ。	This or that, choose one of them.
Noun, verbs: "whether (or not)"	Iku ka [dō ka] wakaranai. 行くか（どうか）分からない。	I don't know [whether or not / if] he'll go.
Phrases: question	Wakaru ka? 分かるか？	Do you understand?
Phrase: quotation expressing doubt	Iku ka to omoimasu ga... 行くかと思いますが。。。	I think he'll go (but I'm not sure)...
kai かい	kai is a gentler and masculine variant of the question marker ka.
ka na かな	Translates to: "I wonder" (Note: 'Ka na' implies having mostly made up one's mind. Drawing out the 'na' [ka naa] implies less certainty.) Etymology: ka + na
Phrases	Kare wa ayashii hito ka na. 彼は怪しい人かな。	I wonder if he's a suspicious person.
kara から	Translates to: "from, after, because" Kara may be followed by no to link two nouns.
Nouns: "from, out of"	Tōkyō kara kaetta. 東京から帰った。	He returned from Tokyo.
Nouns: "from, out of"	zutto mae kara no hanashi ずっと前からの話	a conversation from way back
Verb (te form): "after"	Owatte kara, kite kudasai. 終わってから、きてください。	Please come by after finishing (after you've finished).
Adjectives, Verbs: "because"	Niku o tabenai kara, rāmen wa dame da 肉を食べないから、ラーメンはだめだ。	Because he doesn't eat meat, ramen is bad (a bad idea).
ka shira かしら	Ka shira is like ka na, but is used more by women. See also Gender differences in spoken Japanese. Etymology: ka + shira, the irrealis form (i.e. negative form minus the -nai) of shiru "to know"
Phrases	Kare wa ayashii hito ka shira. 彼は怪しい人かしら。	I wonder if he's a suspicious person.
kedo けど	Translates to: "although, but" Etymology: kedo is a shortened version of formal keredomo. It also appears semi-abbreviated and semi-formally as keredo or kedomo.
Adjectives, verbs	Kanojo wa henda kedo* kirei da.* 彼女は変だけどきれいだ。	She is strange but pretty
kiri きり (切り)	Translates to: "just, only" Kiri is more rarely used than dake, functions as a noun and may be followed by no.
Nouns	futari kiri no o-mise 二人きりのお店	a shop with just two people [who work there]
koro/goro ごろ (頃)	Translates to: "around, about, approximately" Koro functions as a noun and may be followed by no.
Nouns	San-ji goro ni aimashō. 三時ごろに会いましょう。	Let's meet around 3 o'clock.
koso こそ	Functions as: Emphasis marker. There is no direct translation, but roughly analogous to "precisely" or "exactly", as in examples below.
Phrases	Kyō koso, yaru zo! 今日こそ、やるぞ！	{{{translation}}}
	Kimi ga suki da kara koso kore hodo ganbatte iru n da yo. 君が好きだからこそこれほどがんばっているんだよ。	It's precisely because I like you that I'm working this hard.
	Kochira koso, yoroshiku onegai shimasu. こちらこそ、よろしくおねがいします。	Nice to meet you, too. (Emphasizes this side or me too)
kurai/gurai くらい・ぐらい (位)	Translates to: "about, approximately" Kurai functions as a noun and may be followed by no.
Nouns	Juppun kurai kakaru 十分くらいかかる。	It takes about 10 minutes.
made まで (迄)	Translates to: "up to, until, as far as" Indicates a time or place as a limit.
Nouns (specifically places or times)	Kono densha wa, Shimonoseki made* ikimasu.* この電車は、下関まで行きます。	This train goes as far as Shimonoseki.
Verb	Kaeru made matte iru. 帰るまで待っている。	I'll wait until you come home.
made ni までに (迄に)	Translates to: "by (a certain time)" Etymology: made + ni
Nouns, verbs	Ku-ji made ni kaeru. 九時までに帰る。	I'll come home by nine o'clock.
me め (目)	me (目 only): ordinal particle me (め only): "Damn..."; abusive/pejorative
Classifier nouns: ordinal	Amerika wa nikai me* desu.* アメリカは二回目です。	This is my second time to America.
Noun: abusive "damn..."	Orokamono me! 愚か者め！	[You] damn fool!
mo も	Translates to: "also" Mo always replaces wa and ga, but may follow other particles.
Nouns, phrases	Watashi ni mo kureta. 私にもくれた。	She gave some to me, too.
mono/mon もん	Verb + mono (物) : creates a noun from the verb (only applies to certain verbs) もの/もん at the end of a sentence: casual feminine sentence ender like の; もん is very feminine and a bit cheeky.
With verbs	Nomimono 飲み物	Drink
	Tabemono 食べ物	Food
	Ikimono 生き物	Living thing
At the end of a sentence	"Doushite konakatta no?" "Jugyou ga atta mono." 「どうしてこなかったの？」「授業があったもの。」	"Why didn't you come?" "I had class."
At the end of a sentence	"Doushite konakatta no?" "Jugyou ga atta mon." 「どうしてこなかったの？」「授業があったもん。」	"Why didn't you come?" "I had class, hah."
mono-de もので
mono-ka/mon-ka ものか
mononara ものなら
mono-o ものを
na and nā なぁ	Na (な only): used with a class of adjectives which behave grammatically like nouns (see na-adjectives). It is also used to modify general nouns before other particles which cannot directly follow nouns (e.g. no de). Etymology: The na used with nouns (including na-adjectives) is a form of the copula. Na or nā at the end of a sentence is a variant of ne, implying more reflection.
Na-adjectives	hen na hito 変な人	a strange person
Phrases	Hen da nā! 変だな！	How strange!
nado 等	Translates to: "for example, things like, such as, etc., and so on" Functions as a noun and may be followed by no.
Nouns	Nattō ya kabuki nado* wa Nihon dake ni aru.* 納豆や歌舞伎などは日本だけにある。	Things like natto and kabuki are only in Japan.
nanka/nante 何て	Functions to: emphasize disgust, contempt, or otherwise negative feelings of the speaker. Nante is slightly more formal than nanka.
Nouns	Jogen nanka iranai. 助言なんかいらない。	I don't need any (damn) advice.
Verb^[1]	Oyogu nante dekinai. 泳ぐなんてできない。	I can't swim.
Adjectives^[2]	Ōkiku nante nai kedo, kirei da. 大きくなんてないけど、きれいだ。	It's not big [or anything], but it's clean.
nara なら	Translates to: "if"; conditional Hypothetical (仮定形) or conditional form of the copula da. Related to the more formal naraba.
Nouns, adjectives, verbs, phrases	Atsui nara, eakon o tsukete 暑いなら、エアコンを付けて。	If you're hot, turn on the air conditioner.
ne ね	Translates to: "eh"; interjection, tag question Similar to English "hey", "eh?", French "non?" and Spanish "no?" Asks or shows agreement and reflection at phrase-end, also used before sentences to catch listener's attention (informal).
Phrases	Kimi wa kashikoi yo ne. 君は賢いよね。	You're pretty smart, aren't you.
	Kakkō ii desu ne. 格好いいですね。	That's pretty neat, eh?
	Ne, ima nanji? ね、いま何時？	Hey, what time is it?
ni に	Translates to: "to, in, at, by"; indirect object, direction
Noun: location	Gakkō ni iru. 学校にいる。	I'm at/in school.
Noun: direction	Gakkō ni iku. 学校にいく。	I'm going to school.
Noun: indirect object	Ore ni kaese. 俺に返せ。	Give it back to me.
Noun: passive agent	Ka ni sasareta. 蚊にさされた。	I was bitten by a mosquito.
Noun, verbs (stem only): purpose, intent	Eiga o mi ni* iku.* 映画を見に行く。	I'm going to see a movie.
ni wa には	Translates to: "for; in, to"; Etymology: ni + wa (always written は) The wa part is the topic particle. Serves as emphasis for a negative ending.
Nouns: "for"	Shichimi wa, watashi ni wa* kara-sugiru.* 七味は、私には辛すぎる。	Shichimi is too spicy for me. (i.e., "you might like it, but I'm not touching it.")
Noun: "in, to"	Kyōto ni wa hana ga aru. 京都には花がある。	There are flowers in Kyōto. (Lit.: As for in Kyōto, there are flowers.)
no の	Functions as: possession indicator, noun link, topic marker (subordinate clauses), nominalization When nominalizing whole phrases, the no may function either as emphasis or as a question, depending on tone of voice. Similar to English, a falling tone denotes a statement, and a rising tone a question. Its use to mark statements tends to be more typical of feminine speech. See also Gender differences in spoken Japanese.
Nouns: possession ex. a	sensei no kuruma 先生の車	the teacher's car
Noun: possession ex. b	watashi no konpyuuta 私のコンピュータ	My computer
Noun: possession ex. c	anata no shukudai あなたの宿題	your homework
Noun: linking	kuruma no Toyota 車のトヨタ	Toyota the car [company]
Noun: subject marker in subordinate clauses (see also: ga)	Kare no tsukutta kēki wa oishikatta. 彼の作ったケーキはおいしかった。	The cake that he made was tasty.
i-adjectives: nominalization	Yasui no wa, kore. 安いのは、これ。	This is the cheap[er] one.
Verb: nominalization	Taberu no ga daisuki. 食べるのが大好き。	I love eating.
Phrases: nominalization	Mō, tabeta no? もう、食べたの？	Have you eaten yet?
	Kuruma na no? 車なの？	Is it a car?
	Kare ni mō ageta no yo! 彼にもうあげたのよ！	I already gave it to him!
no de ので	Translates to: "because" Etymology: no + de Colloquially, no de is often shortened to n de.
Phrases^[3]	Tesuto ga aru no de, ikenai. テストがあるので、行けない。	Because I have a test, I can't go.
Phrases^[3]	Gakkō na no de, kin'en da. 学校なので、禁煙だ。	Because this is a school it's no smoking.
nomi のみ	Translates to: "only, just" Nomi is more formal and far less common than dake. Unlike dake, its only meaning is that of small quantity or singleness of frequency.
Nouns	Tō-ten de wa, Nihon en nomi* go-riyō itadakemasu.* 当店では、日本円のみご利用頂けます。	This store accepts Japanese Yen only.
no ni のに	Translates to: "despite, although, even though; would have; in order to" Etymology: no + ni Nouns and na-adjectives must be followed by na before using this particle. No ni has a stronger meaning than kedo when used to mean "although," and conveys regret when used to mean "would have."
Adjectives, verbs: "although"	Benkyō shiteiru no ni, eigo ga hanasenai. 勉強しているのに、英語が話せない。	Although I am studying, I can't speak English.
Adjectives (conditional), verbs (conditional): "would have"	Kaette kitara, yokatta no ni. 帰ってきたら、よかったのに。	It would have been nice if you had come home.
Verb (plain form): "in order to"	Hikkosu no ni torakku ga hitsuyō da. 引っ越すのにトラックが必要だ。	(In order) to move, you need a truck.
o を	Functions as: direct object Translates to: "through, from, past (motion verbs only)" This is unrelated to the honorific prefix o, written お or 御.
Nouns: direct object	Neko ga esa o* tabeta.* 猫が餌を食べた。	The cat ate the food.
Noun: through, etc. (motion)	Sora o tobu 空を飛ぶ	fly through the sky
sa/sā さ・さぁ	Functions as: Masculine sentence/phrase final particle, indicating explanation of obvious facts. It is softer than yo. Sā: Feminine sentence/phrase final particle, used like ne, but often more frequently as extremely colloquial filler.
Phrases: masculine sa	Kanojo wa inai kara, dansu ni ikanai sa. 彼女はいないから、ダンスに行かないさ。	I don't have a girlfriend, so I'm not going to the dance.
Phrases: sā	Kinō sā, gakkō de sā, sensei ni sā, chūi sarete sā, chō mukatsuita. 昨日さあ、学校でさあ、先生にさあ、注意されてさあ、超むかついた。	Like yesterday, in like school, I like got fussed at by like some teacher, and it totally made me sick.
sae さえ	Sae: "even" Note the meaning overlaps with mo. Sae implies (usually) positive emphasis that the evident extent of something is greater than initially expected. Can be followed by mo for additional emphasis. Contrast this with sura.
Nouns	Kanji sae kakeru. 漢字さえ書ける。	He can even write kanji.
de sae でさえ	Translates to: "even" Etymology: de + sae De sae replaces wa and ga, like de mo above.
Nouns	Sonna koto wa saru de sae* dekiru.* そんなことは猿でさえできる。	Even a monkey can do that.
sae...ba/ra さえ…〜ば・ら	Function: sae followed by a verb in the conditional means "if only."
Nouns	'Kore sae nomeba, futsukayoi ga naoru yo. これさえ飲めば、二日酔いが直るよ。	If you would just drink this, your hangover would get better.
shi し	Translates to: "and what's more" (conjunction)
Adjectives, verbs	Kirei da shi, hiroi shi, ii ne, kono apāto! きれいだし、広いし、いいね、このアパート。	It's clean, it's spacious; this apartment is nice, isn't it!
shika しか	Translates to: "only, just" Shika must be followed by a negative verb. Shika may be compounded as dakeshika, kirishika, and nomishika (plus the negative verb) to stress an extremely limited quantity or frequency.
Nouns	Ichi en dama shika nai. 一円玉しかない。	I have just a one-yen coin.
Verb	Yūbin-kyoku ni iku shika* nai.* 郵便局に行くしかない。	The only thing [to do] is to go to the post office.
sura すら	Translates to: "even" Note the meaning overlaps with mo. Sura implies (usually) negative emphasis that the evident extent of something is less than initially expected. Contrast this with sae.
Nouns	Kanji sura kakenai. 漢字すら書けない。	He can't even write kanji.
to と	Translates to: "and" (conjunction); "with" (preposition) "if"; quotation
Nouns: conjunction	sore to kore それとこれ	that and this
Noun: preposition	Boku to ikitai? 僕と行きたい？	Do you want to go with me?
Verb, adjectives: "if"	Benkyō suru to wakaru. 勉強すると分かる。	If you study, you'll understand.
Any phrase: quotation	Umi made! to sakenda. 海までと叫んだ。	"To the sea!" he cried.
to ka とか	Functions as: A listing particle used like nado. Often used with the question word nani (what) in the form nantoka ("something or other"). Etymology: to + ka
Nouns	Kani to ka, hotate to ka, zenbu tabeta yo. 蟹とか、帆立とか、全部食べたよ。	We had crab, scallops, [other stuff,] we ate them all.
to mo とも (共)	To mo (共): "both, all of the" To mo (no kanji): "even if, even though; at the ...-est; whether; [emphasis]" If following a noun and used with a negative verb, meaning changes to "none". Etymology: to + mo
Counted nouns	Watashi wa, aitsura ga futari to mo* kirai da.* 私は、あいつらが、二人とも嫌いだ。	I hate the both of those guys.
Counted nouns	Zannen nagara, sono kuruma wa san dai to mo* irimasen.* 残念ながら、その車は三台とも要りません。	Unfortunately, we need none of those three cars.
Volitional verbs	Dō shiyō to mo* amari susumanai.* どうしようともあまり進まない。	No matter how we try [to do something], we don't make much progress.
Adverbial (continuative) form of i-adjectives	Sukunaku to mo go-jū mairu aruite kita. 少なくとも五十マイル歩いてきた。	We walked at least fifty miles [to get here].
Adverbial (continuative) form of i-adjectives	Osoku to mo itte miyō yo. 遅くともいってみようよ。	Even if it's late, let's go and check it out.
Verb (paired with same verb in negative)	Kau to mo kawanai to mo hakkiri shite imasen. 買うとも買わないともはっきりしていません。	It isn't clear whether they're going to buy or not.
Verb, adjectives This use is similar to the English expression, "as if [something] wouldn't [phrase]."	Waratte ii to mo. 笑っていいとも。^[4]	It's okay to laugh. Ikimasen to mo. 行きませんとも。 As if I would go.
tte って	Written as って in hiragana, this is another form of to. It is a shortened version of itte (言って), the present progressive form of the verb iu (言う), "to say"; it functions as a type of verbal quotation mark. It is sometimes used for a direct quote, sometimes for an indirect quote, and sometimes simply to emphasize a word or concept. tte is casual, and (because it can be a direct quote) the politeness level of the quoted material does not necessarily reflect on the speaker. If you wish to be assuredly formal, use to iimasu instead of tte.
Any phrase	Sugu kimasu tte すぐ来ますって。	Could be, "He said he'll come soon" (more politely) or, "He said, 'I'll come soon.'" (less so).
Any phrase	Arabiago tte, muzukashikunai? アラビア語って難しくない。	"Arabic, huh, isn't that difficult?" (emphasizing a word or concept thoughtfully)
tteba ってば	Functions as:'strong emphasis marker, especially when the speaker has grown impatient. Etymology: te + ba
Any phrase: quotation	kōhī datteba ! コーヒーだってば！	I said "coffee"!
wa は	Wa is a topic marker. It is written with the hiragana は ha, rather than the hiragana わ, wa. Not to be confused with the particle が. Wa is also often used by females at the end of the sentence to establish an emotional connection (in this case, it is written with the hiragana わ, wa). This also conveys a certain deference to the speaker's wishes and emotions.
ya や	やYa is used to make incomplete lists of things. To make an exhaustive list, the particle to is used instead.
	Watashi no suki na tabemono wa okashi ya pan ya mikan nado desu 私の好きな食べ物はお菓子やパンやミカンなどです。	"I like snacks, bread and tangerines."
yara やら	Denotes either uncertainty or listing.
yo よ	Yo comes at the end of the sentence, and is used to make assertions. Compare zo and ze below. Yo is also sometimes used after nouns, and functions as a vocative marker. This is especially used in older speech, poetry, and songs.
	Kaeru yo! 帰るよ！	"I'm going home!"
	Saraba, tomo yo 然らば友よ。	"Farewell, oh friend!"
yori より	Yori can mean "from", and is also used to make comparisons. Yori is usually written より in hiragana.
	Kono densha-wa, Kashiwa-yori saki, kaku eki-ni tomarimasu この電車は可否はよりさき各駅に止まります。	"This train will stop at every station after Kashiwa".
	Dare-yori-mo kanemochi-ni naritai 誰よりも金持ちになりたい。	"I want to become richer than anyone (else)".
ze ぜ	ze indicates assertion. Used mostly by men, it is never considered polite. Compare yo and zo.
zo ぞ	zo indicates assertion. Used mainly by men, it is considered somewhat less forceful and more positive than ze. Compare yo and ze above.
zutsu ずつ	Zutsu means "each" and usually follows counted nouns: Zutsu is written with hiragana as ずつ.
Noun: counted	Chokorēto-o ni-ko-zutsu tabemashita チョコレートを二個ずつ食べました。	I ate two pieces of each (kind of) chocolate.

Contrast

wa and ga

Main article: Japanese grammar#Topic, theme, and subject: は (wa) and が (ga)

ni and de

Ni and de can both be used to show location, corresponding to the prepositions "in" or "at" in English. Their uses are mutually exclusive.

Ni, when used to show location, is used only with stative verbs such as iru, "to be, exist;" aru, "to be, exist, have;" and sumu, "to live, inhabit."

Nihon-ni sundeiru. "I live in Japan."

Gakkō-ni iru. "I am in school."

De is used with action verbs to convey the place of action, as opposed to location of being.

Gakkō-de neru. "I sleep in school."

*Gakkō-ni neru. *"I sleep to school," is not a meaningful construction

ni and e

Ni and e can both indicate direction of motion, meaning "to" or "at" in English. In this sense, e is perhaps closer to English "towards" in terms of use (see example below). As long as ni is used directionally, it is possible to substitute e in its place. Ni used in other senses cannot be replaced by e:

Gakkō ni iku. "I'm going to school," where gakkō, "school," is the destination of iku, "go."

Gakkō e iku. "I'm going to school," where gakkō, "school," is the destination of iku, "go."

Gakkō ni iru. "I'm at school," where gakkō, "school," is the location of iru, "be;" not a destination.

*Gakkō e iru. *"I'm to school," is not a possible construction since "be" is not a verb of motion.

Tomodachi ni au "I'll meet my friends," where tomodachi, "friends," is the indirect object of au, "meet;" not a destination.

*Tomodachi e au *"I'll meet to my friends," which is impossible because "meet" is not a verb of motion.

Hon o kai ni itta "I went to buy a book," where kai ni, "to buy," shows purpose or intent, and is a verbal adverb; not destination.

*Hon o kai e itta *"I went towards buying a book," is not possible because kai, "buying," cannot be a destination.

Indicating direction, using e instead of ni is preferred when ni is used non-directionally in proximity:

Tomodachi ni ai ni Kyōto e itta. "I went to Kyoto to meet my friends."

ga and o

In some cases, ga and o are interchangeable. For example, with the tai form, meaning "want to", it is possible to say either of the following:

Gohan-ga tabetai. "I want to eat rice."

Gohan-o tabetai. "I want to eat rice."

Similarly, suki, a na adjective meaning "liked", can take either ga or o:

Kimi-ga suki da "I like you"

Kimi-o suki de yokatta "I'm glad I like you" (words from a popular song)

ni and to

Ni and to are sometimes interchangeable in forms like ni naru and to naru. The to naru form suggests a natural change, whereas ni naru suggests some indirect agent.

ya and to

Ya is used for incomplete lists, whereas to is used for complete ones.

Differences from English prepositions

Many Japanese particles fill the role of prepositions in English, but they are unlike prepositions in many ways. Japanese does not have equivalents of prepositions like "on", and often uses particles along with verbs and nouns to modify another word where English might use prepositions. For example, ue is a noun meaning "top/up"; and ni tsuite is a fixed verbal expression meaning "concerning", and when used as postpositions:

Tēburu-no　　-ue-ni　　　aru.

Table-OF　　top/up-AT　exists.

"It's on the table."

Ano　　hito-wa, 　　　gitā-ni 　　tsuite　　nandemo　wakaru.

That　person-TOPIC　guitar-TO　concerning　anything　　knows.

"That person knows everything about guitars."

Noun- and verb-derived postpositional idioms

Noun-derived postpositional idioms

jō

上	Translates to: "from the standpoint of"

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Nouns	Rekishi jō wa, tadashii to omoimasu. 歴史上は、正しいと思います。	From a historical point of view, I think you're right.

chū

中	Translates to: "in progress, in the midst of, now doing"

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Nouns	Tadaima, denwa chū* desu.* ただいま、電話中です。	He's on the phone right now.

jū

中	Translates to: "throughout, all across"; often followed by de

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Nouns: time	Ichi nichi jū shigoto shimasu. 一日中仕事します。	I'll work all day long.
Nouns: place	Amerika jū de hayatte iru. アメリカ中で流行っている。	It's getting popular all over America.

kata/gata

かた・がた (方)	Functions as: Plural marker for some pronouns, most polite among plural markers such as ra and tachi.

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Personal pronouns: plural marker	Anata gata no okage de, yoi seiseki o ageraremashita. あなた方のおかげで、よい成績を上げられました。	Thanks to you (folks), we have achieved success.
Person nouns: plural marker	Sensei gata ni tasukete moraimashita. 先生方に助けてもらいしました。	The teachers helped me.

ra

ら (等)	Functions as: Plural marker for some pronouns, least polite among plural markers such as kata/gata and tachi.

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Personal pronouns: plural marker	Boku ra wa ikanai. 僕らは行かない。	We won't go.
Place pronouns: approximate area	Koko ra hen ga itai. ここら辺が痛い。	It hurts around here [hereabouts].

tachi

たち (達)	Functions as: Plural/group marker for nouns and some pronouns referring to people; neutral politeness.

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Animate nouns: plural marker	Sensei tachi ga kita. 先生達が来た。	The teachers came.
Pronouns: plural marker	Watashi tachi wa raishū kaeru. 私達は来週帰る。	We will return next week.
Personal/family names: group marker	Saiaku no ko wa, Okada tachi* da.* 最悪の子は、岡田達だ。	The worst kids are Okada and the others in that group.

Verb-derived postpositional idioms

zoi

沿い	Translates to: "along"; followed by ni.

Follows	Example sentence	Translation
Nouns	Tōri zoi ni aruku. 通り沿いに歩く。	Walk along the street.

Notes

^ Nanka/nante is usually followed by a verb which conveys some kind of undervalue, lacking, or dislike, often in the negative.
^ Can immediately follow i-adjectives, using the adjective's ku form if followed by the negative, or if the adjective is followed by no. Na-adjectives require the copula da or no before nante or nanka.
^ Phrases ending in a noun or na-adjective require the na form of the copula before the nominalizing no.
^ (Name of a Japanese TV programme hosted by Tamori)

References

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (June 2008)

A Dictionary of Elementary Japanese Grammar, Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui, ISBN 4-7890-0454-6
A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar, Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui, ISBN 4-7890-0775-8
Handbook of Modern Japanese Grammar, Yoko McClain.
A Reference Grammar of Japanese, Samuel L. Martin.
How to Tell the Difference Between Japanese Particles, Naoko Chino, ISBN 4-7700-2200-X

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Japanese particles

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