Japanese grammar for beginners

Japanese sentences usually end with the verb, and small words called particles mark each word’s role: わたしはパンを食べます (watashi wa pan o tabemasu) – “I eat bread”, where は marks the topic and を the object. Learn the core particles and the verb forms (ます, ない, て) first.

Lessons

Japanese particles: は, が, を, に, で and moreWhat each basic particle does, with examples は vs が – what’s the difference?Topic vs subject, with the rules of thumb に vs で – where something is vs where it happensLocation, destination, time and means The te-form: how to make it and when to use itConjugation rules and the main uses

Basic sentence patterns

Pattern	Example	Meaning
A は B です	これは本です。	This is a book.
(topic) は (object) を (verb)	私はコーヒーを飲みます。	I drink coffee.
(place) に (thing) があります	机の上に本があります。	There is a book on the desk.
(place) で (action)	図書館で勉強します。	I study at the library.

Verb forms are covered by the verb conjugator, which shows every form of any verb.

Last reviewed 2026-10-09 by the I Love Kanji team.