After learning that が marks subjects and を marks objects, you suddenly encounter this:
私は日本語がわかります。
日本語 is clearly the thing being understood — the object. So why が instead of を? Isn't that backwards?
Don't panic. Japanese has a special group of words whose objects must be marked with が. Learn these words and you'll never mix them up.
Four Types of "が-Object" Words
| Type | Key Words | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Likes/Dislikes | 好き, 嫌い | 私は犬が好きです。 |
| Ability | わかる, 上手, 下手 | 私は日本語がわかります。 |
| Possession | ある, いる | 私は車があります。 |
| Desire | ほしい | 私は新しい本がほしいです。 |
What these words have in common: they describe a state or feeling of the subject, not an action the subject performs. が marks "the thing that triggers this state."
Examples for Each Type
Likes/Dislikes: 好き・嫌い
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 私は音楽が好きです。 | I like music. |
| 兄は犬が大嫌いです。 | My older brother hates dogs. |
| 姉は料理が下手です。 | My older sister is bad at cooking. |
Here, は marks the topic (I / my brother / my sister) and が marks the object of 好き/嫌い/下手 (music / dogs / cooking).
Ability: わかる
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 私は少し日本語がわかります。 | I understand a little Japanese. |
| 田中さんは英語がわかりません。 | Tanaka doesn't understand English. |
わかる is an intransitive verb meaning "to be understandable," and its object takes が.
Possession: ある・いる
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 私は車があります。 | I have a car. |
| 私はかわいい犬がいます。 | I have a cute dog. |
When expressing possession, the thing owned is marked with が. This follows the same logic as existence sentences — が marks "the thing that exists."
Desire: ほしい
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 私は新しいパソコンがほしいです。 | I want a new computer. |
| 私はあなたのプレゼントがほしくないです。 | I don't want your present. |
ほしい is an い-adjective meaning "wanted," and the desired thing takes が.
Why Not を?
Quick way to remember: を pairs with "action" verbs (食べる, 飲む, 読む) — the subject actively does something to the object.
But 好き/嫌い/わかる/ほしい don't describe "actions." They describe states — you're not actively "doing" liking; you're "in a state of" liking. The trigger of that state takes が.
| Verb Type | Particle | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Action (食べる, 読む) | を | 本を読みます |
| State (好き, わかる) | が | 本が好きです |
The Pattern Template
All these sentences follow the same template:
（私は）＿＿が + 好き／嫌い／わかる／ほしい
は marks the topic (usually "I"), が marks the object. When the topic is obvious, the は part is often omitted.
Summary
- 好き/嫌い/上手/下手 → object marked with が
- わかる → object marked with が
- ある/いる (possession) → object marked with が
- ほしい → desired thing marked with が
- Common rule: "state" words use が for objects; "action" words use を
Practice Questions
Q1. Fill in the particle: 「私は日本語＿わかります。」
Show Answer
私は日本語がわかります。
The object of わかる takes が, not を.
Q2. How do you say "I want a cute dog" in Japanese?
Show Answer
（私は）かわいい犬がほしいです。
The object of ほしい takes が. かわいい is an い-adjective that directly modifies the noun.
Q3. Why does 「本を読みます」 use を, but 「本が好きです」 uses が?
Show Answer
読みます is an action verb — you actively "do" the reading, so the object takes を.
好きです describes a state — you're "in a state of" liking, and the trigger of that state takes が.
Simply: actions use を, states use が.