JLPT N5
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How to Say “Please Do…” in Japanese with ～てください
Knowing how to ask someone to do something is an essential part of everyday Japanese. To make a polite request such as “Please close the door” or “Please wait,” you can use ～てください. ～てください Please do (something) JLPT Level: N5 Want to actually remember this? Practice it with spaced repetition and example sentences built from […]
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How to Say “Already” and “Still” in Japanese with もう and まだ
Want to say you’ve already done something or that you haven’t yet? Need to talk about something that is still happening, or that won’t happen anymore? In Japanese, the adverbs もう and まだ are key tools for expressing time-based changes and states. These simple words can express “already,” “still,” “not yet,” and “not anymore” depending […]
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How to Say “By [Time]” in Japanese with までに
How do you say something needs to happen by Friday, by 6 p.m., or by tomorrow in Japanese? When you want to express a deadline—the latest point by which something should happen—you can use までに. までに By (a certain time) JLPT Level: N5 Want to actually remember this? Practice it with spaced repetition and example […]
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How to Ask “May I?” in Japanese with ～てもいい
One of the most useful grammar patterns in any language is how to ask for permission. In Japanese, the phrase ～てもいい lets you do just that. It’s a polite and flexible way to ask, “Is it okay if I ___?” or to grant permission to someone else. ～てもいい May I? / It’s okay if… JLPT […]
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How to Say “This,” “That,” and “Which” in Japanese with こそあど Words
In English, we use “this” and “that” all the time but Japanese takes it a step further. Instead of just two levels of distance, Japanese offers three: things close to you, close to the person you’re talking to, and far from both. On top of that, Japanese adds a fourth layer with a question word. […]
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How to Use the Short Form of Verbs in Japanese
Japanese verbs come in many forms—some express possibility, others give commands or show conditions. But not all verb forms change the meaning of the action itself. Some change how the verb feels depending on the situation. That’s where the short form (also called the plain form) comes in. In this article, we’ll explore what the short […]
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How to Use な-Adjectives in Japanese
In Japanese, there are two main types of adjectives: い-adjectives and な-adjectives. You’ve probably already come across い-adjectives, but in this article, we’re going to focus on their lesser-known counterpart: な-adjectives.Though they behave similarly in sentences, な-adjectives have a few unique rules you’ll want to get comfortable with. な-Adjectives Describing Nouns JLPT Level: N5 Understanding […]
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How to Link Actions in Japanese with the て-Form
When speaking in Japanese, you often need to connect multiple actions in a sentence. Instead of saying, “I went to the store. I bought milk,” you can make the sentence more natural by saying, “I went to the store and bought milk.” In Japanese, this is done using the て-form of verbs. て-Form Linking Actions […]
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だけ (dake) Meaning – How to Say “Just” in Japanese
Japanese has three different expressions that can be used to not only mean “only” or “just,” but that also explain how we feel about the situation. In this lesson, we’ll be covering the most neutral way to express “only” or “just.” だけ Only; Just JLPT Level: N5 Understanding it once is only the first step […]
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ほしい (Hoshii) Meaning – How to Say “Want” in Japanese
There are primarily three different expressions that can be used to express wants. In this lesson we’ll be covering two of those ways: 1) When you or others want a thing and 2) when you want somebody else to do something. 欲(ほ)しい Want JLPT Level: N5 Understanding it once is only the first step With […]