Japanese Lesson 3: Positive Sentence Structure "Subject は Noun です"

Japanese Lessons

Japanese Language Sentence Structure 1: "Subject は Noun + です"

Learning Japanese often starts with basic sentence patterns. One of the most essential patterns is "Subject は Noun です" This simple and versatile structure helps you introduce yourself or state basic facts. Let’s explore it together!

Part 1: Vocabulary List

Before diving into the sentence structure, here’s a list of vocabulary we’ll use in this lesson:

Kanji	Hiragana	Romaji	Meaning
私	わたし	watashi	I/Me
学生	がくせい	gakusei	Student
先生	せんせい	sensei	Teacher/Professor
さん	さん	san	Mr./Ms. (polite title)
人	じん	jin	Person/Nationality
医者	いしゃ	isha	Doctor

Study Tips:

Watashi is commonly used for "I," but other options like boku (for men - informal) or atashi (for women - informal) can also be used depending on the context.
The suffix -san is a polite way to address someone, similar to "Mr." or "Ms." in English.
Jin is used to describe nationality, such as Nihonjin (Japanese person) or Americajin (American person).

Part 2: Understanding "Subject は Noun です"

This sentence pattern is one of the most fundamental structures in Japanese:

[Subject] は [Noun] です

Wa (は): A particle that marks the subject of the sentence. Though written as "ha," it is pronounced as "wa."
Desu (です): This word adds politeness to the sentence and is similar to the English "to be" (is/am/are).

Translation:
This sentence pattern typically means "[Subject] is [Noun]."

Important Notes:

In Japanese, the subject is often omitted when it is clear from the context.
This pattern is used in formal or polite settings. In casual situations, desu is often replaced with da.

Part 3: Example Sentences

Here are two example sentences using this pattern and the vocabulary from above:

わたしは学生です。
Watashi wa gakusei desu.
I am a student.

田中さんは先生です。
Tanaka-san wa sensei desu.
Mr. Tanaka is a teacher.

Sentence Breakdown:

In the first sentence, the subject is "watashi" (I), and the noun is "gakusei" (student).
In the second sentence, the subject is "Tanaka-san," referring to a person named Tanaka with the polite suffix "-san."

Part 4: Practice Exercises

Now it’s your turn! Try to form sentences using the pattern "Subject は Noun です" with the vocabulary provided earlier.

Exercise 1:

Write a sentence that says, "I am a doctor" in Japanese.

Exercise 2:

Write a sentence that says, "Yamada-san is Japanese" in Japanese.

Conclusion

The "Subject は Noun です" pattern is a foundational part of learning Japanese. Mastering this structure allows you to introduce yourself, talk about others, and share simple information.

Keep practicing by creating new sentences with different vocabulary. This way, you’ll not only understand the sentence structure but also expand your vocabulary!

Happy learning, and don’t forget to try the exercises above. 💪😊

Good luck with your Japanese studies! ✨