Hiragana
ใฒใใใช
The rounded, flowing kana. Hiragana writes native Japanese words, grammar endings, and anything without (or alongside) kanji โ it's the first script you learn. Each character stands for one syllable.
Katakana
ใซใฟใซใ
The sharp, angular kana. The same sounds as hiragana, but used for foreign loanwords, names, sound effects, and emphasis โ a bit like italics in English.
Example
ใณใผใใผ โ coffee
Gojลซon
ไบๅ้ณ
The 'fifty sounds' โ the basic kana laid out in a grid of five vowels (a i u e o) crossed with consonant rows (k, s, tโฆ). It's the kana syllabary in order, and the layout of the trainer's main board.
Example
ใ ใ ใ ใ ใ โ the k-row
Dakuten
ๆฟ็น
The two small strokes ใadded to a kana's top-right to 'voice' it โ turning a soft sound into a hard one. ใ (ka) becomes ใ (ga); ใ (sa) becomes ใ (za).
Example
ใ โ ใ (ka โ ga)
Handakuten
ๅๆฟ็น
The small circle ใadded to the ใฏ-row to make the p-sounds. It appears only on ใฏ ใฒ ใต ใธ ใป, turning them into ใฑ ใด ใท ใบ ใฝ.
Example
ใฏ โ ใฑ (ha โ pa)
Yลon
ๆ้ณ
Contracted sounds made by adding a small ใ ใ
ใ to an i-row kana, blending two characters into one syllable. ใ plus a small ใ becomes ใใ (kya).
Noun
ๅ่ฉ
A word that names a person, place, thing or idea. Japanese nouns don't change for number or gender, and there are no articles like 'a' or 'the'.
Example
ๆฌ (ใปใ) โ book
Pronoun
ไปฃๅ่ฉ
A word that stands in for a noun, like 'I', 'you' or 'this'. Japanese uses pronouns far less than English โ the subject is usually dropped when it's clear from context.
Example
ๅฝผ (ใใ) โ he
Counter & numbers
ๅฉๆฐ่ฉ
Japanese counts things with a number plus a counter word that matches the kind of object โ flat things, long things, animals and so on. Plain number words live here too.
Example
ไธๅน (ใใใณใ) โ three (small animals)
Name
ๅบๆๅ่ฉ
A proper name โ a given name, surname, place, company or other named entity. These come from Shirabe's dedicated name dictionary rather than the general word list.
Example
็ฐไธญ (ใใชใ) โ Tanaka (surname)
Verb
ๅ่ฉ
An action or state-of-being word. Japanese verbs come at the end of the clause and conjugate for tense, politeness and negation โ but never for person or number.
Example
้ฃในใ (ใในใ) โ to eat
Ichidan verb
ไธๆฎตๅ่ฉ
A 'group 2' verb with a stable stem: drop the final ใ and add endings directly. Most verbs ending in -iru or -eru are ichidan, which makes them the easy ones to conjugate.
Example
่ฆใ (ใฟใ) โ to see
Godan verb
ไบๆฎตๅ่ฉ
A 'group 1' verb whose final sound shifts across the five vowel rows as it conjugates. The largest and most varied verb group.
Example
้ฃฒใ (ใฎใ) โ to drink
Suru verb
ใใๅ่ฉ
A noun that becomes a verb by adding ใใ ('to do'). A hugely productive pattern โ most borrowed and abstract actions work this way.
Example
ๅๅผทใใ (ในใใใใใใ) โ to study
Transitive verb
ไปๅ่ฉ
A verb that acts on a direct object, marked with ใ. It often has an intransitive twin โ for example ้ใใ (to open something) pairs with ้ใ (to open by itself).
Example
้ใใ (ใใใ) โ to open (something)
Intransitive verb
่ชๅ่ฉ
A verb that describes something happening on its own, with no direct object. Its subject is marked with ใ.
Example
้ใ (ใใ) โ (something) opens
Adjective
ๅฝขๅฎน่ฉ
A word that describes a noun. Japanese has two main kinds โ ใ-adjectives and ใช-adjectives โ that conjugate differently, plus a few rarer types that simply attach to a noun.
Example
ๆฐใใ (ใใใใใ) โ new
I-adjective
ใๅฝขๅฎน่ฉ
An adjective ending in ใ that conjugates on its own โ including for past tense and negation โ without needing ใงใ to do the work. Also called keiyoushi.
Example
้ซใ (ใใใ) โ tall, expensive
Na-adjective
ใชๅฝขๅฎน่ฉ
An adjective that takes ใช to attach to a noun and otherwise behaves much like a noun. Also called keiyodoshi or adjectival noun.
Example
้ใ (ใใใ) โ quiet
Non-past
่พๆธๅฝขใป็พๅจๅฝข
The dictionary form โ present and future tense in one. It's how words are listed here, and the base every other form is built from. Plain on its own; add ใพใ for the polite form.
Example
้ฃในใ (ใในใ) โ eat, will eat
Past
้ๅปๅฝขใปใๅฝข
Says something already happened. Plain past ends in ใ or ใ (the 'ta-form'); the polite past swaps ใพใ for ใพใใ. The same form also makes the conditional and the ใใใ list.
Example
้ฃในใ (ใในใ) โ ate
Te-form
ใฆๅฝข
The connector form, ending in ใฆ or ใง. It joins clauses ('do this andโฆ'), makes requests with ใใฆใใ ใใ, and powers the continuous ใใฆใใ and many other patterns. The single most useful form to master.
Example
้ฃในใฆ (ใในใฆ) โ eat andโฆ, please eat
Provisional (~eba)
ไปฎๅฎๅฝขใปใฐๅฝข
An 'if/when' conditional ending in ใใฐ, used for general or hypothetical conditions โ 'if you do X, then Y'. Often paired with the potential to mean 'if onlyโฆ'.
Example
้ฃในใใฐ (ใในใใฐ) โ if (one) eats
Potential
ๅฏ่ฝๅฝข
Expresses ability โ 'can do' or 'is able to'. The object it acts on is usually marked with ใ rather than ใ. Ichidan verbs and ใใใใ also overlap with the passive.
Example
้ฃในใใใ (ใในใใใ) โ can eat
Passive
ๅ่บซๅฝข
Recasts the sentence so the action is done to the subject โ 'is eaten', 'was told'. Japanese also uses it for the 'suffering passive', where something happens to your detriment.
Example
้ฃในใใใ (ใในใใใ) โ is eaten
Causative
ไฝฟๅฝนๅฝข
Means make or let someone do something. Endings in ใใใ / ใใใใ. The person made to act is marked with ใ or ใซ depending on nuance.
Example
้ฃในใใใ (ใในใใใ) โ make/let (someone) eat
Causative-passive
ไฝฟๅฝนๅ่บซๅฝข
The causative and passive stacked together โ 'was made to do' something, usually unwillingly. Built from the causative plus the passive ending.
Example
้ฃในใใใใใ (ใในใใใใใ) โ was made to eat
Volitional
ๆๅๅฝขใปๆๅฟๅฝข
The 'let's' / 'shall we' form expressing intention or invitation. Plain ends in ใใใ / ใใใ; the polite version is ใใพใใใ. Add ใจๆใ to say 'I think I'llโฆ'.
Example
้ฃในใใ (ใในใใ) โ let's eat
Imperative
ๅฝไปคๅฝข
A blunt command โ 'eat!', 'do it!'. Strong and rough, mostly heard in orders, signs, sports and rendered speech; everyday requests use ใใฆใใ ใใ instead.
Example
้ฃในใ (ใในใ) โ eat!
Conditional (~tara)
ๆกไปถๅฝขใปใใๅฝข
The ใใใ conditional, built from the past form. The most flexible 'if/when' โ 'once X happens, then Y'. Works for specific one-off situations where ใใฐ feels too general.
Example
้ฃในใใ (ใในใใ) โ if/when (one) eats
Alternative (~tari)
ไธฆๅๅฝขใปใใๅฝข
Lists representative actions without implying order โ 'do things like A and B'. Built from the past form plus ใ, usually ending the list with ใใ.
Example
้ฃในใใ (ใในใใ) โ eating (among other things)
Continuative (~i)
้ฃ็จๅฝขใปใพใๅฝข
The verb stem you reach by dropping ใพใ โ the joint that builds polite forms, ใใใ (want to), ใใชใใ (while), compound verbs and noun-like uses.
Example
้ฃใน (ใใน) โ eat- (stem)
Adverb
ๅฏ่ฉ
A word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb โ describing how, when or to what degree something happens.
Example
ใใฃใใ โ slowly
Particle
ๅฉ่ฉ
A short grammatical marker that shows a word's role in the sentence โ subject, object, topic, direction and so on. Particles are the glue of Japanese grammar.
Example
ใ โ marks the direct object
Conjunction
ๆฅ็ถ่ฉ
A word that links clauses or sentences, like 'and', 'but' or 'so'.
Example
ใงใ โ but, however
Interjection
ๆๅ่ฉ
An exclamation or filler that expresses emotion or reaction, standing apart from the sentence's grammar.
Example
ใใ โ ah, oh
Expression
่กจ็พ
A fixed phrase, idiom or set expression whose meaning is best learned as a whole rather than word by word.
Example
ใๆฉใ (ใใฏใใ) โ good morning
Prefix
ๆฅ้ ญ่พ
An element attached to the front of a word to change its meaning, like ใ for politeness or ไธ for negation.
Example
ใ่ถ (ใใกใ) โ (honorific) tea
Suffix
ๆฅๅฐพ่พ
An element attached to the end of a word to change its meaning or role, like ใ็ ('-ish/-al') or the honorific ใใใ on a name.
Example
ๆฌๅฑ (ใปใใ) โ bookshop (ใๅฑ = shop)
Auxiliary
ๅฉๅ่ฉ
A helper word that attaches to a verb or adjective to add meaning โ tense, negation, politeness, desire and so on.
Example
ใใใ โ want to (do)
