#beginner
Tag hub for beginner articles.
Japanese Taste Words: Sweet, Salty, Spicy, Sour, and Bitter
Describe how food tastes with Japanese adjectives. Notice that 甘い and 辛い differ by more than one English label, and learn each word with a plausible food example.
Japanese Time Words: Today, Tomorrow, Last Week, and Next Week
Learn time expressions as a connected set, then use them in short plans. The contrast between 昨日 and 明日 is more useful when you can also choose an appropriate verb ending.
Iku, Kuru, and Kaeru: Japanese Movement Verbs in Context
Follow where the person starts and where they are going. 行く, 来る, and 帰る describe movement from different viewpoints, even when English could use “go.”
Kiru, Haku, and Kaburu: Which Japanese Verb Means Wear?
Japanese chooses different verbs for putting on different items. Learn a small outfit as verb–noun pairs instead of translating every item with 着る.
Miru, Kiku, and Yomu: Read, Watch, Listen, and Ask in Japanese
Choose an action that matches the medium and purpose. Practise reading a message, watching a film, listening to music, and asking a person a question.
Aku, Akeru, Shimaru, Shimeru: Open and Close with the Right Subject
Distinguish a door opening from someone opening a door. These four verbs help you connect vocabulary, particles, and the resulting state expressed with ている.
Ageru, Kureru, and Morau Practice: Track the Giver and Receiver
Follow the direction of a gift and the speaker’s viewpoint. These beginner scenes make the relationship explicit instead of treating the three verbs as interchangeable translations.
Te Kudasai vs Te Mo Ii Desu Ka: Requests and Permission Practice
Decide who will perform the action. A request asks another person to act; a permission question asks whether an action is allowed.
Toki vs Mae Ni Practice: When Something Happens and Before It Happens
Connect an action to its timing. Compare “before leaving” with “when I was a student,” and practise the noun and verb connections separately.
Potential Form vs Koto Ga Dekiru: Express Ability with Two Patterns
Compare 読めます with 読むことができます. Both can express ability, but they require different verb forms before their endings.
To vs Ya Practice: Complete Lists, Examples, and Companions
Use と to join the items you are explicitly listing and や to present examples from a larger set. Keep the companion use of と separate from list structure.
Ta Form vs Te Form: Change the Ending Without Losing the Sound Pattern
The ta form and te form share sound-change patterns, but they do different jobs. Practise switching between them and choosing a form for a specific construction.