{"id":1706,"date":"2009-11-03T05:09:15","date_gmt":"2009-11-03T07:09:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/?p=1706"},"modified":"2026-08-10T22:16:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T01:16:06","slug":"adjectives-i-in-japanese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/adjetivos-i-em-japones\/","title":{"rendered":"I-adjectives in Japanese: inflections, uses, and examples"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>You <strong>i-adjectives in Japanese<\/strong>, also called <strong>\u3044 adjectives<\/strong>, can appear directly before a noun and also end a sentence. To inflect them, the main rule is to remove the <strong>final \u3044<\/strong> and add the necessary ending: <strong>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/strong> in the negative, <strong>\uff5e\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong> in the past, and <strong>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong> in the negative past.<\/p>\n\n<p>This transformation belongs to the adjective itself. <strong>\u3067\u3059<\/strong> can make the sentence polite, but it should not be used as if it were the only part responsible for tense or negation.<\/p>\n\n<h2>What are i-adjectives in Japanese?<\/h2>\n\n<p>\u3044-adjectives describe qualities, states, sensations, or evaluations. The basic form usually ends in <strong>\u3044<\/strong>, like <strong>\u9ad8\u3044<\/strong> (<em>takai<\/em>, tall or expensive), <strong>\u65b0\u3057\u3044<\/strong> (<em>atarashii<\/em>, new), and <strong>\u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u3044<\/strong> (<em>omoshiroi<\/em>, interesting).<\/p>\n\n<p>They have two main uses:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Before a noun:<\/strong> \u65b0\u3057\u3044\u672c (<em>atarashii hon<\/em>) \u2014 new book.<\/li>\n<li><strong>As a predicate:<\/strong> \u3053\u306e\u672c\u306f\u65b0\u3057\u3044\u3067\u3059 (<em>Kono hon wa atarashii desu<\/em>) \u2014 This book is new.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Not every word that graphically ends in \u3044 belongs to this group. <strong>\u304d\u308c\u3044<\/strong> (<em>kirei<\/em>, beautiful or clean), and <strong>\u6709\u540d<\/strong> (<em>y\u016bmei<\/em>, famous), for example, are \u306a adjectives. If in doubt, check the word class in the dictionary and consult the general guide to <a href=\"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/how-to-use-adjectives-in-japanese\/\">adjectives in japanese<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h2>The four main forms of i-adjectives<\/h2>\n\n<p>Instead of memorizing \u201csixteen inflections,\u201d start by crossing two choices: <strong>non-past or past<\/strong> and <strong>affirmative or negative<\/strong>. The polite form can be added later.<\/p>\n\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr><th>Function<\/th><th>Plain form<\/th><th>Common polite form<\/th><th>Example with \u9ad8\u3044<\/th><\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr><td>Non-past affirmative<\/td><td>\uff5e\u3044<\/td><td>\uff5e\u3044\u3067\u3059<\/td><td>\u9ad8\u3044\uff0f\u9ad8\u3044\u3067\u3059<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Non-past negative<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\uff0f\uff5e\u304f\u3042\u308a\u307e\u305b\u3093<\/td><td>\u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044\uff0f\u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Affirmative past<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059<\/td><td>\u9ad8\u304b\u3063\u305f\uff0f\u9ad8\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>negative past<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><td>\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059\uff0f\uff5e\u304f\u3042\u308a\u307e\u305b\u3093\u3067\u3057\u305f<\/td><td>\u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\uff0f\u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n<p>The formation chart for the plain style and the polite style in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irodori.jpf.go.jp\/assets\/data\/pre-intermediate\/pdf\/ZZ_L09.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Irodori da Japan Foundation<\/a> records these four oppositions. The introductory material also presents <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irodori.jpf.go.jp\/assets\/data\/starter\/pdf\/X_L07.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\uff5e\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059 and the alternative \uff5e\u304f\u3042\u308a\u307e\u305b\u3093<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<!--Ads10-->\n\n<h2>How to form the negative and the past<\/h2>\n\n<h3>Negative: replace \u3044 with \u304f\u306a\u3044<\/h3>\n\n<p><strong>\u9ad8\u3044 \u2192 \u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/strong><br \/>\u305f\u304b\u3044 \u2192 \u305f\u304b\u304f\u306a\u3044<br \/><em>Takai \u2192 takakunai<\/em><br \/>It is expensive\/tall \u2192 It is not expensive\/tall.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>\u3053\u306e\u5e97\u306f\u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3002<\/strong><br \/>\u3053\u306e \u307f\u305b\u306f \u305f\u304b\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3002<br \/><em>Kono mise wa takakunai desu.<\/em><br \/>This store is not expensive.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Affirmative past: replace \u3044 with \u304b\u3063\u305f<\/h3>\n\n<p><strong>\u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u3044 \u2192 \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong><br \/><em>Omoshiroi \u2192 omoshirokatta<\/em><br \/>It is interesting \u2192 It was interesting.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>\u6620\u753b\u306f\u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059\u3002<\/strong><br \/>\u3048\u3044\u304c\u306f \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059\u3002<br \/><em>Eiga wa omoshirokatta desu.<\/em><br \/>The movie was interesting.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Negative past: replace \u3044 with \u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/h3>\n\n<p><strong>\u5fd9\u3057\u3044 \u2192 \u5fd9\u3057\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong><br \/>\u3044\u305d\u304c\u3057\u3044 \u2192 \u3044\u305d\u304c\u3057\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<br \/><em>Isogashii \u2192 isogashikunakatta<\/em><br \/>It is busy \u2192 It was not busy.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>\u6628\u65e5\u306f\u5fd9\u3057\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059\u3002<\/strong><br \/>\u304d\u306e\u3046\u306f \u3044\u305d\u304c\u3057\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059\u3002<br \/><em>Yesterday I was not busy.<\/em><br \/>Yesterday I was not busy.<\/p>\n\n<p>Note that <strong>it was expensive<\/strong> and <strong>it was interesting<\/strong> are not the normal past forms. The past appears in the adjective: <strong>\u9ad8\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059<\/strong> and <strong>it was interesting<\/strong>. To review the role of \u3067\u3059 without treating it as a perfect equivalent of \u201cto be\u201d, see the article on <a href=\"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/desu-the-verb-to-be-in-japanese\/\">\u3067\u3059 in Japanese<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h2>The exception \u3044\u3044: use the base \u3088 in inflections<\/h2>\n\n<p><strong>\u3044\u3044<\/strong> means \u201cgood\u201d and originates from <strong>\u3088\u3044<\/strong>. In the basic form, \u3044\u3044 is very common; in other forms, use the base <strong>\u3088<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr><th>Function<\/th><th>Correct form<\/th><th>Form to avoid<\/th><\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr><td>Non-past affirmative<\/td><td>\u3044\u3044\uff0f\u3088\u3044<\/td><td>\u2014<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Non-past negative<\/td><td>\u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/td><td>\u3044\u3044\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Affirmative past<\/td><td>\u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><td>\u3044\u3044\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>negative past<\/td><td>\u3088\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><td>\u3044\u3044\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n<p>The Japan Foundation material on past impressions highlights that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irodori.jpf.go.jp\/assets\/data\/starter\/pdf\/X_L17.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u3044\u3044 forms the past as \u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059<\/a>. The same pattern applies to compounds ending in \u3044\u3044, such as <strong>\u304b\u3063\u3053\u3044\u3044 \u2192 \u304b\u3063\u3053\u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n<h2>How to connect adjectives and indicate change<\/h2>\n\n<h3>Use \uff5e\u304f\u3066 to connect characteristics<\/h3>\n\n<p>Replace the final \u3044 with <strong>\u304f\u3066<\/strong> to connect an \u3044 adjective to the rest of the sentence:<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>\u3053\u306e\u90e8\u5c4b\u306f\u5e83\u304f\u3066\u3001\u660e\u308b\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3002<\/strong><br \/>\u3053\u306e \u3078\u3084\u306f \u3072\u308d\u304f\u3066\u3001\u3042\u304b\u308b\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3002<br \/><em>Kono heya wa hirokute, akarui desu.<\/em><br \/>This room is spacious and bright.<\/p>\n\n<p>THE <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irodori.jpf.go.jp\/assets\/data\/elementary01\/pdf\/Y_L05.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Japan Foundation presents \uff5e\u304f\u3066 as a way to connect \u3044 adjectives<\/a>. Depending on the context, the first characteristic can also function as a cause or explanation for the second part.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Use \uff5e\u304f\u306a\u308b for \u201cto become\u201d or \u201cto get\u201d<\/h3>\n\n<p>With <strong>\u306a\u308b<\/strong>, the \uff5e\u304f form expresses change:<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>\u3060\u3093\u3060\u3093\u5bd2\u304f\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u3002<\/strong><br \/>\u3060\u3093\u3060\u3093 \u3055\u3080\u304f\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3057\u305f\u3002<br \/><em>Dandan samuku narimashita.<\/em><br \/>It gradually got colder.<\/p>\n\n<p>The pattern <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irodori.jpf.go.jp\/assets\/data\/elementary01\/pdf\/Y_L03.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u3044 adjective without the final \u3044 + \u304f\u306a\u308a\u307e\u3059<\/a> is used by Irodori to describe changes in weather. The same \uff5e\u304f base can also modify an action: <strong>\u540d\u524d\u3092\u5927\u304d\u304f\u66f8\u3044\u3066\u304f\u3060\u3055\u3044<\/strong> (<em>Namae o \u014dkiku kaite kudasai<\/em>) means \u201cPlease write your name in large letters.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Essential difference between i and na adjectives<\/h2>\n\n<p>Before nouns, the \u3044 adjective keeps the \u3044: <strong>\u9759\u304b\u306a\u90e8\u5c4b<\/strong> is \u201cquiet room\u201d with a \u306a adjective, while <strong>Spacious room<\/strong> is \u201cspacious room\u201d with the adjective \u3044. In the predicate and inflections, each group follows its own pattern.<\/p>\n\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr><th>Usage<\/th><th>\u3044 adjective<\/th><th>\u306a adjective<\/th><\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr><td>Before the noun<\/td><td>Expensive store<\/td><td>Quiet store<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Polite predicate<\/td><td>The store is expensive<\/td><td>The store is quiet<\/td><\/tr>\n<tr><td>Simple negative<\/td><td>Not expensive<\/td><td>It is not quiet<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n<p>The article on <a href=\"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/adjectives-in-japanese\/\">\u306a adjectives in Japanese<\/a> will be the next deep dive of the cluster. To build complete sentences with these forms, also use the method of <a href=\"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/how-to-form-sentence-in-japanese\/\">Japanese sentence formation<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Common mistakes with i adjectives<\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Calling the form in \uff5e\u3044 an infinitive:<\/strong> \u201cbasic form\u201d or \u201cnon-past affirmative form\u201d is more accurate.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Treating every word ending in \u3044 as an \u3044 adjective:<\/strong> \u304d\u308c\u3044 and \u6709\u540d are \u306a adjectives.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Making the past with \u3067\u3057\u305f:<\/strong> use \u9ad8\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059, not \u9ad8\u3044\u3067\u3057\u305f.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Inflecting \u3044\u3044 like a regular adjective:<\/strong> use \u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044, \u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f and \u3088\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Removing the \u3044 before a noun:<\/strong> say \u65b0\u3057\u3044\u672c, not \u65b0\u3057\u672c.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2>Short dialogue<\/h2>\n\n<p><strong>A:<\/strong> How was that restaurant?<br \/>How was that restaurant?<br \/><em>Sono mise wa d\u014d deshita ka?<\/em><br \/>How was the restaurant?<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>B:<\/strong> The food was delicious. But the restaurant wasn't very spacious.<br \/>The food was delicious. But the restaurant wasn't very spacious.<br \/><em>Ry\u014dri wa oishikatta desu. Demo, mise wa amari hirokunakatta desu.<\/em><br \/>The food was tasty. But the restaurant wasn't very spacious.<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>A:<\/strong> Was the price high?<br \/>Was the price high?<br \/><em>Nedan wa takakatta desu ka?<\/em><br \/>Was the price high?<\/p>\n\n<p><strong>B:<\/strong> No, it was cheap.<br \/>No, it was cheap.<br \/><em>Iie, yasukatta desu.<\/em><br \/>No, it was cheap.<\/p>\n\n<p>The dialogue combines affirmative past and negative past without shifting the inflection to \u3067\u3059. If the order of elements still causes doubt, review the <a href=\"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/fundamental-japanese-grammar\/\">Basics of Japanese Grammar<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Commented exercise<\/h2>\n\n<ol>\n<li><strong>\u9ad8\u3044<\/strong> in the non-past negative: <strong>Not expensive<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u697d\u3057\u3044<\/strong> in the affirmative past: <strong>\u697d\u3057\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u5fd9\u3057\u3044<\/strong> in the negative past: <strong>\u5fd9\u3057\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u3044\u3044<\/strong> in the affirmative past: <strong>\u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Una <strong>Wide<\/strong> and <strong>Bright<\/strong>: <strong>Wide and bright<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n<p>The mental rule is simple: keep the \u3044 in the basic form and before nouns; to transform the adjective, replace that \u3044 with <strong>\u304f\u306a\u3044<\/strong>, <strong>\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong>, <strong>\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f<\/strong> or <strong>\u304f\u3066<\/strong>. Then, confirm whether the word is really an i-adjective and remember the base \u3088 of \u3044\u3044.<\/p>\n\n<div id=\"rank-math-faq\" class=\"rank-math-block\">\n<div class=\"rank-math-list\">\n<div id=\"faq-question-8d459e5d628cf\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">Is every adjective ending in \u3044 an i-adjective?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>No. The graphical ending helps, but words like \u304d\u308c\u3044 and \u6709\u540d belong to the group of \u306a adjectives. When in doubt, confirm the class in the dictionary and observe how the word appears before a noun.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-4d0fc479976a4\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">How to make an adjective negative in form?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>Remove the final \u3044 and add \u304f\u306a\u3044. \u9ad8\u3044 becomes \u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044; in the polite form, use \u9ad8\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059 or \u9ad8\u304f\u3042\u308a\u307e\u305b\u3093.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-48f66699a17eb\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">How do you put an adjective in the past tense?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>Remove the final \u3044 and add \u304b\u3063\u305f: \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u3044 becomes \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u304b\u3063\u305f. In the polite form, say \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3067\u3059, not \u304a\u3082\u3057\u308d\u3044\u3067\u3057\u305f.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-d880f76950411\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">What is the difference between i-adjectives and na-adjectives?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>\u3044-adjectives keep the \u3044 before the noun and inflect into forms like \u304f\u306a\u3044 and \u304b\u3063\u305f. \u306a-adjectives use \u306a before the noun and follow a different pattern in the predicate, such as \u9759\u304b\u3067\u3059 and \u9759\u304b\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-f8d466f77fff5\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">Why does \u3044\u3044 become \u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>It preserves a historical base linked to \u3088\u3044. Therefore, its derived forms use \u3088: \u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044, \u3088\u304b\u3063\u305f, and \u3088\u304f\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f. Compounds like \u304b\u3063\u3053\u3044\u3044 follow the same pattern.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn to identify and inflect i-adjectives in Japanese in negative and past forms, use \u3067\u3059, and understand the exception \u3044\u3044.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":1708,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[76,49,70],"tags":[27,71,2,3],"class_list":["post-1706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adjetivos-japoneses","category-curso-de-japones-gratis","category-gramatica-japonesa","tag-gramatica","tag-gramatica-japonesa","tag-idioma-japones","tag-nihongo","resize-featured-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1706"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4411,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1706\/revisions\/4411"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/comoaprenderjapones.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}