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The subject of Japanese sentences

learn more about the subject of sentences in japanese on nihongo!

as we have already studied word order in japanese sentences, we know that they have an inverse organization of words in Portuguese. In Japanese sentences, the word order is usually subject object (predicate or rest of the sentence) + verb.

To make it easier to find the subject of Japanese sentences, we need to know two basic particles: は(wa) and が(ga).

In Japanese sentences, symbols can change sound

Particles are hiragana symbols used to mark words. In many cases, when hiragana is used as a particle, its sound can be modified. In our case, the hiragana は(ha), when used as a particle, has its sound changed to wa.

Particles indicate where the subject of Japanese sentences is

Showing where the subject of a sentence in Japanese is located is one of the functions of the particle . The word that comes before it is usually the subject of the sentence.

彼女行きます。

We can also find the subject of a Japanese sentence by the particle . The function of this particle is to indicate the theme of the sentence (topic). In many cases, the topic of the sentence is also the subject, and the particle  ends up indicating its location. Thus, in Japanese sentences, the word that comes before the particle  is a strong candidate for subject.

ブラジル人です。


In the Japanese sentences we use as an example, both  how much  there are no translations from Japanese to Portuguese. They are just pointers (or separators) of the parts of a sentence. Furthermore, in many cases, these two particles can appear together in the same sentence.

There are many other functions for particles  and , but for now, just know these functions. Over time, we will deepen our study of them.

Kanji calligraphy exercise

Below are the Japanese ideographic symbols used in this article. Selecting the desired kanji, copy and paste them into Worksheet for Kana and Kanji Practice , a new window will open where you can view the printable file and practice Japanese calligraphy by covering the gray symbols and then trying to write yourself. Just print and practice.

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