Full Answer
What are the different types of adjectives in Japanese?
There are two distinct types of adjectives in Japanese: i-adjectives and na-adjectives. I-adjectives all end in "~ i," though they never end in "~ ei" (e.g. "kirei" is not considered an i-adjective.) Japanese adjectives differ significantly from their English counterparts (and from their counterparts in other Western languages).
How do you describe a noun in Japanese?
To describe a noun, you need to put the particle な in the middle of the adjective and the noun (hence, it’s called na -adjective). Take a look at the example below. 好きな人は田中さん だ。 すきなひとはたなかさんだ。 The person I like is Tanaka-san.
How do I change an adjective in a Japanese sentence?
When an adjective is used in a Japanese sentence, the type of adjective that it is will determine how to change it. Good news about i-adjectives if you’re speaking in the present tense—you don’t need to change anything! I-adjectives are ready to go as-is; simply insert them into the sentence before the word that you are modifying, like so:
Are there syntactic adjectives in Japanese?
Both the predicative forms (終止形 shūshikei "terminal form") and attributive forms (連体形 rentaikei) of adjectival verbs and adjectival nouns can be analyzed as verb phrases, making the attributive forms of adjectival verbs and adjectival nouns relative clauses, rather than adjectives. According to this analysis, Japanese has no syntactic adjectives.
How many Japanese adjectives are there?
two kindsLet's learn Japanese adjectives such as big and small, hot and cold. In Japanese language, there are two kinds of adjectives: regular adjectives called i-adjectives and irregular adjectives called na-adjectives....Japanese Adjectives.AffirmativeNegativePresentatsuiatsu-kunaiPastatsu-kattaatsu-kunakatta
How many total adjectives are there?
There are a total of 8 types of Adjectives in English grammar namely Descriptive adjective, Numeral adjective, Quantitative adjective, Demonstrative adjective, Interrogative adjective, Possessive adjective, Proper adjective, and Exclamatory adjective.
Do adjectives exist in Japanese?
Most of the words that can be considered to be adjectives in Japanese fall into one of two categories – variants of verbs, and nouns: adjectival verb (Japanese: 形容詞, keiyōshi, literally 形容 "description" or "appearance" + 詞 "word"), or i-adjectives.
How do you list adjectives in Japanese?
In Japanese, there are two types of adjectives: i–adjectives and na–adjectives. I-adjectives end in the hiragana character い (i), and na–adjectives end in な. Today, we are only focusing on i–adjectives.
What are the 7 types of adjectives?
7 Types of English Adjectives That Every ESL Student Must KnowDescriptive. A descriptive adjective is probably what you think of when you hear the word “adjective.” Descriptive adjectives are used to describe nouns and pronouns. ... Quantitative. ... Demonstrative. ... Possessive. ... Interrogative. ... Distributive. ... Articles.
What are the 10 types of adjectives?
The 10 types of adjectives are as follows:Adjective of Quality.Adjective of Quantity.Adjective of Number.Demonstrative Adjective.Distributive Adjective.Interrogative Adjective.Possessive Adjective.Emphasizing Adjective.More items...
Is Genki a na-adjective?
An example of an -na adjective is げんき genki (healthy, vigorous, energetic…) You only use the な na ending when placed before nouns. Therefore, some words will simply have to be memorized as -na adjectives. Some even end in -i such as きれい kirei (pretty, beautiful) even though these are not -i adjectives.
Is Oishii a na-adjective?
Examples: oishi i desu (It's delicious) / oishi katta desu (It was delicious) / oishi kunai desu (It isn't delicious). / oishi kunakatta desu (It wasn't delicious). na-adjectives are the adjectives ends with "na" when it modifies a noun.
Why do Japanese say ne?
Ne can be translated into “isn't it?” or “right?” in English. It is added to the end of a sentence in Japanese regardless of the level of politeness you're using. In general, the particle Ne is asking for confirmation, agreement or assent of the other person or group that the speaker is talking to.
What type of adjective is kawaii?
kawaii – 可愛い (かわいい) : an i-adjective meaning 'cute' or 'pretty' in Japanese.
Is Sugoi an I adjective?
Sugoi (great, wow, amazing, etc.) is an i-adjective that can also be converted into an adverb. It's most often written in hiragana, but it's not uncommon to see it written using kanji as well.
Do adjectives come first in Japanese?
As in English, Japanese adjectives come before the noun they're describing. Think: bright lights, tall buildings or expensive food. There are two types of Japanese adjectives: い-adjectives and な-adjectives.
What are 20 describing words?
20 Describing Words That Are Commonly Used in EnglishAmazingInterestingCharmingKindlySincerelyLovinglyUsuallyCommonlyNormallyTerriblyRemarkablySignificantlyAbsolutelyHappyDelightful
What are the 50 examples of adjective?
Top 50 adjectives in English1. AbleHaving what is required (e.g., money or skills) to do something When I was young, I was able to stand on my head.2. AngryBeing very annoyed or upset If I'm late for class again, the teacher is going to be angry.58 more rows•Apr 15, 2021
What are 100 examples of an adjective?
100 Adjectives, Comparatives and Superlatives ListAdjectiveComparativeSuperlativeangryangrierangriestbadworseworstbigbiggerbiggestbitterbittererbitterest10 more rows
What are adjective 25 examples?
25 Most Common Adjectivesgood.new.first.last.long.great.little.own.More items...
What are the two types of Japanese adjectives?
There are two types of Japanese adjectives: い形容詞 (ii-keiyoushi) and な形容詞 (na-keiyoushi)i.e., i-adjectives and na-adjectivesBasically, these are the...
How to use adjectives in Japanese?
The Japanese ii adjectives can be used with 2 structures:Adjective + Noun + です.Noun + は + adjective + です.The na adjectives can also be used with 2...
What are some examples of Japanese na-adjectives?
Some examples of na-adjectives in Japanese are:にぎやかな nigiyakana | Livelyすきな sukina | Likeableしんせつな shinsetsuna | Kindじょうずな jyouzuna | Skilledへたな he...
What are some examples of Japanese ii-adjectives?
Some examples of ii-adjectives in Japanese are:おおきい ookiii | Bigちいさい chiisai | Smallあつい atsui | Hotつめたい tsumetai | Coldあたらしい atarashii | Newやすい yas...
Where to learn more about Japanese particles?
Japanese particles are an essential aspect of the language, and you should learn the basic ones early in your studies. You can start with 15 Japane...
Do you have more Japanese lessons like this one?
Absolutely, we do.You can check more of this kind of Japanese lessons in our Grammar Bank.
A Quick Recap on Na and I Adjectives
Here’s where things get complicated: Japanese I-adjectives modify themselves. For example, when you say “this is not expensive” in English, you’re not actually modifying the word “expensive”. Rather, you’re modifying the “to be” verb.
Table of Content
In English, adjectives are divided into seven fundamental categories: opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin and material. In this article, however, we’ll be breaking them down based on how they’re contextually used.
Japanese Adjectives For Sense and Taste
The word あつい can be easily translated as “hot”, but depending on the context, the kanji used differs. In this category, the あつい we’re referring to takes on the kanji of 熱い instead of 暑い. This is because 熱い implies the hot sensation by touch instead of the surrounding temperature.
Japanese Adjectives For Dimension and Speed
Here, note that there are two meanings (and two kanji) for the word はやい: 速い and 早い. 速い is used to describe something or someone’s speed, while 早い has closer meaning to “early”.
Japanese Adjectives For Colors, Shapes and Texture
Historically, the Japanese language doesn’t make a distinct separation between blue and green. This is why the adjective for the color blue and green is あおい ・青い.
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Types of adjective
In Japanese, nouns and verbs can modify nouns, with nouns taking the 〜の particles when functioning attributively (in the genitive case ), and verbs in the attributive form ( 連体形 rentaikei ). These are considered separate classes of words, however.
Syntax
Adjectival verbs (形容詞 keiyōshi) end with い i (but never えい ei) in base form. They may predicate sentences and inflect for past, negative, etc. As they head verb phrases, they can be considered a type of verbal (verb-like part of speech) and inflect in an identical manner as the negative form of verbs.
Inflection
Adjectival verbs ( i -adjectives) have a basic inflection created by dropping the -i from the end and replacing it with the appropriate ending. Adjectival verbs are made more polite by the use of です desu.
What are the two types of adjectives in Japanese?
In the Japanese language, there are only two types of adjectives: い-adjectives and な-adjectives. い-adjectives have a Japanese origin, and な-adjectives have a Chinese origin. How do you differentiate between them? The truth is that it is surprisingly easy to see the difference between the two groups. You just have to look at the ending of the word. Take a look at the example below of Japanese adjectives:
How many functions are there in a -adjective?
There are two functions of い-adjectives. The first function is describing nouns, for example:
What are some examples of Garaigo adjectives?
Also, some of the Garaigo adjectives have become slang words that are commonly used in social media. Some examples may include エモい (emoi, emotional) チルイ (chirui, chill) and グロい (guroi, grotesque). If you spend a lot of time on social media and would like to learn more about Japanese slang, read this article, "Guide to Japanese Slang"
How to learn 100 words a day?
You can start just by learning around 10-20 words per hour of study. Beginner learners really only need to get a grip on the essential vocabulary that you will use in everyday situations and a lot of textbooks are structured in a way that will help you gradually build your knowledge. Do not feel like you have to rush to memorize all the difficult words and all the words that you barely have any use for. You probably will not remember them until you really need them anyway! In my experience, the words I remembered quickest and easiest are the ones that I saw or heard a couple of times in different situations. Once you learn a new word, try to use it in conversation with your friend, teacher, or in a journal.
What is the Japanese word for "hotto"?
Moreover, the Japanese borrowed some words from English and other languages like Dutch, French, and German. These words are called Garaigo. Here is a list of Garaigo adjectives:
Do adjectives become negative?
な-adjectives become their negative forms in the same way that nouns do. Let’s take a look!
Is "kireina hana" an adjective?
However, きれいな is actually a な-adjective, and it should follow all the rules for な-adjectives when changing it to negative, past, etc. — for instance, きれいなはな (kireina hana, beautiful flower). This is also the same for the word きらい (kirai) , which is also な-adjective—for example, きらいなひと (kiraina hito, hated person).
Japanese Adjectives for Positive Feelings
There are many common adjectives for expressing positive feelings in Japanese. But these listed below will give you a lot of mileage. One of the most common, すごい, means “amazing” but it’s used to say everything from “That’s really cool” to an indifferent “Oh, I see.” It’s often used on its own as a general response to just about anything.
Japanese Adjectives for Negative Feelings
Here is the list of opposites to the words above. Words like ひどい and ダサい are quite strong and insulting when used to describe people. But ひどい is often used to describe a terrible, unlucky, or unfortunate situation, like how すごい is used to describe any good situation.
Japanese Adjectives for Size and Weight
Now let’s talk about describing what something looks like! For instance, if you wanted to say the “big, fluffy dog” as we talked about earlier, you would say 大きくてふわふわ犬 ( ookikute fuwafuwa inu ). Now, descriptive words for describing things like texture, such as fluffy, are often used with Japanese onomatopoeia. ふわふわ is an example of onomatopoeia.
Japanese Adjectives for Color
Not all Japanese colors are い or な adjectives. So, if you want to use them as adjectives, you combine them to the noun using the particle の. For example: ピンクの花 ( pinku no hana, “pink flower”).
Japanese Adjectives for Distance and Speed
You can use these adjectives to express length, depth, distance, and speed. But note that 短い is “short,” but it’s not used to call someone short. You can describe objects with 短い, though, or things like hair: 髪が短いです。 ( Kami ga mijikai desu.)
Japanese Adjectives for Quantity and Intensifiers
These adjectives are extremely useful. They allow you to express quantity without specifying a number — which is very helpful if you forget your Japanese numbers or the counters that go with them!
Japanese Adjectives for Characteristics
You’ll use and hear these adjectives all the time, so make sure to memorize them! A couple not listed below that are extremely common: やばい ( yabai) and うまい ( umai ). These are a bit casual and used as Japanese slang words. やばい can be used to say something is awful or amazing.
A Quick Recap on Na and I Adjectives
Table of Content
- In English, adjectives are divided into seven fundamental categories: opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin and material. In this article, however, we’ll be breaking them down based on how they’re contextually used. Words with the particle な attached to them indicatena-adjective. Jump to Japanese adjectives for describing: 1. Sense and taste 2. ...
Japanese Adjectives For Sense and Taste
- The word あつい can be easily translated as “hot”, but depending on the context, the kanji used differs. In this category, the あつい we’re referring to takes on the kanji of 熱い instead of 暑い. This is because 熱い implies the hot sensation by touch instead of the surrounding temperature.
Japanese Adjectives For Dimension and Speed
- Here, note that there are two meanings (and two kanji) for the word はやい: 速い and 早い. 速い is used to describe something or someone’s speed, while 早い has closer meaning to “early”. 田中さんは速いランナーです。 たなかさんははやいランナーです。 Tanaka-san is a fast runner. 去年、春の訪れが早かった。 きょねん、はるのおとずれがはやかった。 Last year, spring came early.
Japanese Adjectives For Colors, Shapes and Texture
- Historically, the Japanese language doesn’t make a distinct separation between blue and green. This is why the adjective for the color blue and green is あおい・青い. However, there is a word to describe green in modern Japanese: みどり・緑, although it is still less commonly used. To use this, instead of attaching the adjective to な, you will use の instead. 緑の地球を守りましょう。 …
What’s Next?
- A hundred adjectives might seem overwhelming at first, but with practice, you’ll be able to use them effortlessly in conversations. We like to remind our students to never treat い-adjectives and な-adjectives the same way (there’s no such thing as genkikunai!). While memorizing these Japanese adjectives, be sure to always note their classifications. Now that you’ve learned how t…
Overview
This article deals with Japanese equivalents of English adjectives.
Types of adjective
In Japanese, nouns and verbs can modify nouns, with nouns taking the 〜の particles when functioning attributively (in the genitive case), and verbs in the attributive form (連体形 rentaikei). These are considered separate classes of words, however.
Most of the words that can be considered to be adjectives in Japanese fall into one of two categories – variants of verbs, and nouns:
Syntax
Adjectival verbs (形容詞 keiyōshi) end with い i (but never えい ei) in base form. They may predicate sentences and inflect for past, negative, etc. As they head verb phrases, they can be considered a type of verbal (verb-like part of speech) and inflect in an identical manner as the negative form of verbs. Their inflections are different and not so numerous as full verbs.
Adjectival verbs are considered verbs because they inflect with the same bases as verbs and the…
Inflection
Adjectival verbs (i-adjectives) have a basic inflection created by dropping the -i from the end and replacing it with the appropriate ending. Adjectival verbs are made more polite by the use of です desu. です desu is added directly after the inflected plain form and has no syntactic function; its only purpose is to make the utterance more polite (see Honorific speech in Japanese).
いい ii "good" is a special case because it comes from the adjective 良い yoi. In present tense it i…
See also
• Japanese verb conjugation
• Japanese godan and ichidan verbs
• Japanese grammar
External links
• Why does Japanese have two kinds of adjectives? (-i adjectives and -na adjectives), Boaz Yaniv, 2011 Jun 13, Japanese Language & Usage, Stack Exchange