Verbs
Japanese verbs are simpler than European verbs in one way: they don't change based on the subject. "I eat", "you eat", and "she eats" all use the same verb form. However, Japanese verbs do conjugate for tense (past/non-past), politeness (plain/polite), and mood (negative, potential, volitional, etc.). The conjugation patterns are highly regular once you know which group a verb belongs to.
Verb groups
Japanese verbs fall into three groups, and knowing a verb's group tells you how to conjugate it. Group 1 (godan/"five-step") verbs have stems ending in consonants and follow one pattern. Group 2 (ichidan/"one-step") verbs end in -eru or -iru and follow a simpler pattern. There are only two truly irregular verbs — する (to do) and 来る (to come):
| Group | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Group 1 (godan) | Various | 書く (kaku, write) |
| Group 2 (ichidan) | -eru, -iru | 食べる (taberu, eat) |
| Irregular | 2 verbs | する (suru), 来る (kuru) |
Polite form (ます form)
The ます (masu) form is polite Japanese — the form you use with strangers, colleagues, and in any situation where you're not close friends. It's your default for nearly all conversations. To form it, you create the "ます stem" (slightly different for each group) and add ます. This stem is also the base for many other conjugations:
| Group | Dictionary | ます form |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 書く (kaku) | 書きます (kakimasu) |
| 1 | 話す (hanasu) | 話します (hanashimasu) |
| 2 | 食べる (taberu) | 食べます (tabemasu) |
| 2 | 見る (miru) | 見ます (mimasu) |
| Irr. | する (suru) | します (shimasu) |
| Irr. | 来る (kuru) | 来ます (kimasu) |
Conjugation patterns (ます stem)
Once you have the ます stem, you can form multiple tenses and moods by changing the ending. Japanese doesn't distinguish present from future — both use the same form. Context (time words like 明日, "tomorrow") clarifies when the action happens:
| Form | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 〜ます | Present/future polite | 食べます (I eat/will eat) |
| 〜ません | Negative polite | 食べません (I don't eat) |
| 〜ました | Past polite | 食べました (I ate) |
| 〜ませんでした | Past negative polite | 食べませんでした (I didn't eat) |
Common verbs
These are the verbs you'll encounter most often. Memorise both the dictionary form (for understanding casual speech and looking up words) and the ます form (for speaking politely). Notice that ある and いる (to exist) use different verbs for things vs. living beings — a distinction that doesn't exist in English:
| Dictionary | ます form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 行く (iku) | 行きます | go |
| 来る (kuru) | 来ます | come |
| 食べる (taberu) | 食べます | eat |
| 飲む (nomu) | 飲みます | drink |
| 見る (miru) | 見ます | see, watch |
| 聞く (kiku) | 聞きます | hear, ask |
| 話す (hanasu) | 話します | speak |
| 読む (yomu) | 読みます | read |
| 書く (kaku) | 書きます | write |
| 買う (kau) | 買います | buy |
| する | します | do |
| ある | あります | exist (things) |
| いる | います | exist (living) |
Want to: 〜たい
To express desire ("I want to..."), add たい (tai) to the ます stem. This creates an i-adjective, meaning it conjugates like adjectives (たくない for "don't want to", たかった for "wanted to"). Like Korean, たい is mainly used for your own desires; asking about others' wants requires different constructions:
- 食べたい (tabetai) — want to eat
- 行きたい (ikitai) — want to go
Can do: 〜ことができる / potential form
There are two ways to express ability in Japanese. The construction "dictionary form + ことができる" (literally "the thing of [verb] can exist") works for any verb. Alternatively, each verb has a potential form (formed differently for each group) that's more concise. Both mean "can [verb]":
- 日本語を話すことができます — I can speak Japanese (formal construction)
- 食べられます (taberaremasu) — I can eat (potential form)
て-form (requests, connecting)
The て-form (te-form) is one of the most versatile conjugations in Japanese. It's used for making requests (〜てください), connecting actions ("I ate and then left"), describing ongoing states (〜ている), and more. Group 1 verbs follow sound-based rules; Group 2 verbs simply replace る with て. Learning the て-form unlocks many grammar patterns:
| Group 1 ending | て form |
|---|---|
| -く | -いて |
| -ぐ | -いで |
| -す | -して |
| -う/-つ/-る | -って |
| -む/-ぶ/-ぬ | -んで |
Group 2: Replace る with て: 食べる → 食べて
Usage:
- 〜てください (please do): 見てください (please look)
- Connecting actions: 食べて、飲んで… (eat and drink and…)