22 articles
grammar
Snap two verbs together to say 'start eating,' 'keep writing,' or 'drank too much' — Japanese compound verbs are easier than you think.
grammar
教える and 教わる look like a transitive/intransitive pair, right? Wrong -- both are transitive. Same with 預ける and 預かる. Do not let appearances fool you.
grammar
Godan verb conjugation looks intimidating, but it's just the last kana jumping between the あ~お rows. Learn the six forms and you've cracked half of Japanese verbs.
grammar
Ichidan verbs conjugate with one simple rule: drop the る. Then master 来る and する — the only two irregulars — and you've completed the full verb conjugation picture.
grammar
「書け！」is a command, 「書くな！」is a prohibition, 「書きなさい」is the gentle version — three levels of directness, and using the wrong one can be awkward.
grammar
The door is open uses が, opening the door uses を. Japanese verbs split into intransitive and transitive, and the particles change accordingly.
grammar
いらっしゃる, おる, いたす, うけたまわる... Special keigo verbs are exam staples. One table covers all honorific and humble verb correspondences.
grammar
「声を大きくする」 means 'make the voice louder' and 「部屋をきれいにする」 means 'make the room clean' — by adding する you turn adjectives into 'cause to become'.
grammar
食べない, 行かない, しない — attach ない to a verb and it turns negative. Change it to なかった and you've got past negative.
grammar
'Left without washing my face' uses ないで. 'Not tasty and not cheap' uses なくて. Both are negative connectors, but they work very differently.
