Learning a new language is fun, but it requires a lot of effort—studying the complicated grammar rules and memorizing thousands of words. But we have a tip for you! The fastest and easiest way to learn Japanese is to just focus on the most useful and common Japanese sentence patterns and start speaking them!
The most frequently used Japanese sentence patterns are useful for survival communication and day-to-day interactions. When you know the essential sentence patterns in Japanese, you can arrange and create more sentences to express yourself and have conversations.
In this article, we’ll introduce the ten most useful Japanese sentence patterns, which cover the most basic statements and questions. Boost your Japanese conversation skills here at JapanesePod101.com!
Here’s the most common question sentence pattern in Japanese.
To make a Japanese interrogative sentence, simply add the question marker か (ka)to the end of an affirmative sentence and pronounce it with a rising intonation.
Examples:
あなたは学生ですか。(Anata wa gakusei desu ka.) —“Are you a student?”
彼らはあなたの友達ですか。(Kare-ra wa anata no tomodachi desu ka.) —“Are they your friends?”
その本は難しいですか。(Sono hon wa muzukashii desu ka.) —“Is that book difficult?”
今日の天気は雨のち曇りですか。(Kyō no tenki wa ame nochi kumori desu ka.)— “Is the weather today cloudy after rain?”
駅の隣のビルは銀行ですか。(Eki no tonari no biru wa ginkō desu ka.)— “Is the building next to the station a bank?”
Ashita wa hare desu ka. = “Is tomorrow sunny?”
3. I Want (to)… …が欲しいです/…たいです
“I want …“ = [noun] …が欲しい です (ga hoshii desu)
“I want to …“ = [verb] …たい です (-tai desu)
These are the simplest Japanese sentence patterns for expressing “want.”
These Japanese phrases differ depending on whether you want something [noun] or want to do something [verb], as indicated above.
Keep in mind that the subject can be omitted from a Japanese sentence when it’s clear from the context who the subject is.
Japanese verb conjugation is NOT affected by the person (I, you, he, she, we, they), number (singular/plural), or gender (female/male) of the subject.
Examples using a noun:
（私は）水が欲しいです。([Watashi wa] mizu ga hoshii desu.)— “I want water.”
（私は）新しい車が欲しいです。([Watashi wa] atarashii kuruma ga hoshii desu.) — “I want a new car.”
誕生日にダイヤの指輪が欲しいです。(Tanjōbi ni daiya no yubiwa ga hoshii desu.) — “I want a diamond ring for (my) birthday.”
Examples using a verb:
（私は）今日は和食が食べたいです。([Watashi wa] kyō wa washoku ga tabetai desu.)— “I want to eat Japanese food today.”
来年は沖縄に行きたいです。(Rainen wa Okinawa ni ikitai desu.)— “I want to go to Okinawa next year.”
太ったので運動をしたいです。(Futotta node undō o shitai desu.)— “I want to do exercises because I got fat.”
For more information about Japanese verbs, please check out our Japanese Verbs and 50 Most Common Verbs pages.
4. I Need (to)… …が必要です/…(する)必要があります
“I need …“ = [noun] …が必要です (ga hitsuyō desu)
“I need to …“ = [verb] …(する)必要があります (hitsuyō ga arimasu)
These are the simplest Japanese sentence patterns for expressing “need.”
As you can see above, the Japanese sentence structure changes depending on whether you need something [noun] or need to do something [verb].
Examples using a noun:
（私は）あなたが必要です。([Watashi wa] anata ga hitsuyō desu.)— “I need you.”
その車は電気の充電が必要です。(Sono kuruma wa denki no jūden ga hitsuyō desu.)— “That car needs to charge with electricity.”
この店での支払いはクレジットカードが必要です。(Kono mise de no shiharai wa kurejitto kādo ga hitsuyō desu.) — “You need a credit card to pay at this store.”
Examples using a verb:
週末に働く必要があります。(Shūmatsu ni hataraku hitsuyō ga arimasu.)— “I need to work on the weekend.”
あなたは病院に行く必要があります。(Anata wa byōin ni iku hitsuyō ga arimasu.) — “You need to go to a hospital.”
学生は卒業試験に合格する必要があります。(Gakusei wa sotsugyō shiken ni gōkaku suru hitsuyō ga arimasu.) — “The students need to pass the graduation exam.”
Watashi wa shiken ni gōkaku suru hitsuyō ga arimasu. = “I need to pass the exam.”
5. I like … …が好きです
“I like …“ = [noun] …が好きです (ga suki desu)
This is one of the easiest and most useful sentences in Japanese. You can use it the same way you would in English when you’re fond of something or someone.
Examples:
私は動物が好きです。(Watashi wa dōbutsu ga suki desu.)— “I like animals.”
彼は食べることが好きです。(Kare wa taberu koto ga suki desu.)— “He likes eating.”
私の猫は昼寝が好きです。(Watashi no neko wa hirune ga suki desu.) — “My cat likes taking a nap.”
かおりは背が高い男性が好きです。(Kaori wa se ga takai dansei ga suki desu.)— “Kaori likes tall guys.”
私は山より海が好きです。(Watashi wa yama yori umi ga suki desu.)— “I like the sea more than the mountains.”
6. Please (do) … ….(して)ください
“Please (do) …” = … [verb] …ください (kudasai)
This is a simple sentence pattern in Japanese for asking someone to do something; here, the word ください(Kusadai) is used with a verb.
Also note that when a noun and the postpositional particle を (o) come before kudasai, it becomes a polite way of saying “Please give (me) [noun].” For example: りんごを一つください (ringo o hitotsu kudasai), meaning “Please give me one apple.”
Examples:
静かにしてください。(Shizuka ni shite kudasai.)— “Please be quiet.”
お座りください。(O-suwari kudasai.)— “Please be seated/sit down.”
そのペンを取ってください。(Sono pen o totte kudasai.)— “Please take the pen.”
食事の前に手を洗ってください。(Shokuji no mae ni te o aratte kudasai.)— “Please wash your hands before the meal.”
次の電車が来るまでしばらくお待ちください。(Tsugi no densha ga kuru made shibaraku o-machi kudasai.)— “Please wait some time until the next train comes.”
7. May I / Can I (Do) …? ….(しても）いいですか。
“May I / Can I (do) …?” = … [verb] …(しても）いいですか。(moii desu ka.)
This is a very common Japanese language sentence structure to ask for permission in a polite way. It literally means: “(Is it/Am I) good to (do)…?”
Examples:
今から行ってもいいですか。(Ima kara itte mo ii desu ka.)— “Can I go now?”
水を飲んでもいいですか。(Mizu o nonde mo ii desu ka.)— “Can I drink water?”
明日提出してもいいですか。(Ashita teishutsu shite mo ii desu ka.)— “May I submit it tomorrow?”
ここで楽器を演奏してもいいですか。(Koko de gakki o ensō shite mo ii desu ka.)— “Can I play instruments here?”
この切符でこの電車に乗ってもいいですか。(Kono kippu de kono densha ni notte mo ii desu ka.)— “Can I take this train with this ticket?”
Kono kippu de kono densha ni notte mo ii desu ka. = “Can I take this train with this ticket?”
8. What is …? ….は何ですか？
“What is …?” = … [noun] ….は何ですか？(wa nan desu ka?)
This is a very simple phrase to ask for information in a polite way.
Examples:
これは何ですか。(Kore wa nan desu ka.)— “What is this?”
あなたの名前は何ですか。(Anata no namae wa nan desu ka.)— “What is your name?”
今年の和暦は何ですか。(Kotoshi no wareki wa nan desu ka.) — “What is the year of the Japanese era this year?”
この下着の素材は何ですか。(Kono shitagi no sozai wa nan desu ka.)— “What is the material of this underwear?”
あなたの一番好きな映画は何ですか。(Anata no ichi-ban suki na eiga wa nan desu ka.)— “What is your favorite movie?”
Anata no ichi-ban suki na eiga wa nan desu ka. = “What is your favorite movie?”
9. When is …? ….はいつですか？
“When is …?” = … [noun] ….はいつですか。(wa itsu desu ka.)
This is a common Japanese sentence pattern to ask about time in a polite way.
Examples:
次の会議はいつですか。(Tsugi no kaigi wa itsu desu ka.)— “When is the next meeting?”
あなたの誕生日はいつですか。(Anata no tanjōbi wa itsu desu ka.) —“When is your birthday?”
桜の満開時期はいつですか。(Sakura no mankai jiki wa itsu desu ka.)— “When is the best season of full-bloom cherry blossoms?”
初めて海外旅行したのはいつですか。(Hajimete kaigai ryokō shita no wa itsu desu ka.)— “When was the first time you traveled overseas?”
大学の卒業式はいつですか。(Daigaku no sotsugyōshiki wa itsu desu ka.)— “When is the graduation ceremony of the university?”
Sotsugyōshiki wa itsu desu ka. = “When is the graduation ceremony?”
10. Where is …? ….はどこですか？
“Where is …?” = … [noun] ….はどこですか。(wa doko desu ka.)
This is a common Japanese sentence pattern for asking about location in a polite way.
Examples:
明日の会議はどこですか。(Ashita no kaigi wa doko desu ka.)— “Where is the meeting tomorrow?”
あなたの地元はどこですか。(Anata no jimoto wa doko desu ka.)— “Where is your hometown?”
渋谷駅はどこですか。(Shibuya Eki wa doko desu ka.)— “Where is Shibuya Station?”
ここから一番近いトイレはどこですか。(Koko kara ichi-ban chikai toire wa doko desu ka.)— “Where is the nearest toilet from here?”
東海道新幹線の乗り場はどこですか。(Tōkaidō Shinkansen no noriba wa doko desu ka.) — “Where is the platform of Tōkaidō Shinkansen?”
For more information (with audio) about the most useful Japanese sentence patterns, please check out the Top 10 Sentence Patterns for Beginners lesson on our website.
11. Conclusion: How JapanesePod101.com Can Help You Learn More Japanese
In this article, we introduced the ten most useful sentence patterns in Japanese. Once you learn these Japanese sentence patterns, you can create many more variations for better communication! The good thing about Japanese is that verbs don’t conjugate in terms of the number (singular/plural), person (I, you, he, she, we, they, it), or gender of the subject/object! So don’t hesitate to practice speaking today!
If you would like to learn more about the Japanese language, you’ll find much more helpful content on JapanesePod101.com. We provide a variety of free lessons to help you improve your Japanese language skills. Here’s some more information about Japanese basics, with audio to enrich your conversations:
And there’s so much more! Learn faster and enjoy studying Japanese at JapanesePod101.com!
Before you go, let us know in the comments if there are any Japanese sentence patterns you still want to know! We’d be glad to help, and look forward to hearing from you!
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