It means “get married” ★ Sometimes it might be difficult to tell the difference between the two types of 〜そうです (sou desu) because they sound similar. Japanese slang word: yabai (やばい）- when things get dangerous, Japanese Particle combination では (de wa) and じゃ (ja), Japanese word nuances: 美味しい (oishii) vs. 美味い (umai)…, The Japanese volitional form (~しよう、〜しましょう): much…, Different ways to express “Again” in Japanese, Japanese phrase 〜として (~toshite) [including としても and としては], そろそろ (sorosoro) – an extremely useful Japanese phrase, Japanese Vocabulary list: computer science and…, Articles on learning Japanese, culture, and media reviews (manga, novels, etc.) I would like to add something though. Rentaikei + sou (そう) The rentaikei + そう (sou) is used to describe “hearsay”. stevo Says: September 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am. - Is it your dog? stevo Says: September 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am. [adjective]ない don’t require any さ insertion. For more about desu , please see Lesson 5 of my Japanese Verbs . ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. This is a well-formed sentence so we use おいしく, This is not a well-formed sentence (it isn’t grammatically correct), so we use 勉強し, There there is already a “wa” particle in this sentence before the ない, so we use そうじゃ. The ultra quick guide to Japanese verbs of existence: desu です, aru ある and iru いる desu, iru and aru can all be translated as "to be" in English, but they all have different meanings Similarly, depending on whether you want to describe “state” or “hearsay”, other types of words will conjugate differently. 4141. The word janai じゃない is basically the negative form desu and da. = Sou nano desuka. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. (ます masu / です desu) C) Exalted or Honorific (尊敬語 sonkeigo) - This is what you say to your boss or those higher up when speaking about them or to them. – It was good. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. ano biru no naka desu. states something (noun) IS something dewa arimasen - negative form of desu ja nai - negative form of da 1. ↓ (conversational) そうな ん ですか。 = Sou nan desu ka. However, even some people with high positions may choose to use the humble form with those under him or her. I would like to add something though. If you do a Google search for “降らなさそう” (which is incorrect) you’ll see over 4000 hits, although a few of them are talking about the very fact it is incorrect. is going to write, writable. 「雨が降り そう です。」 (Ame ga furi sou desu.) Follow Self Taught Japanese on WordPress.com, The Adventures of “wa” + “ga”: Question Sentences, Classical poem translation: “The Second of a Series of Miscellaneous Poems” (雜詩其二) by Tao Yuanming (陶淵明), Japanese Netflix Drama review: “Alice in Borderland” (1st Season), Japanese women’s literature book release: “Days and Nights” by Hayashi Fumiko. For more information, see the article about masu, masen, masen deshita. Tabeta past tense + desu Tabenai negative present tense + desu Tabenakatta negative past tense + desu i-adjective + sou desu na-adjective (minus na) + ta + sou desu 2. Whereas for そうです (sou desu) in 目の"そう" (me no "sou"), it means "It looks like ~"or "It seems ~". 1. – “I heard that Ms. Satou is getting married.” ★ 結婚する (kekkon suru) is a verb in the plain form. As for your next question, the negative form of いけそうです is いけなさそうです. Desu isn't used in all tenses like most "normal" verbs but can be used as below. Now let's do some negative ones. To make a formal style adjective sentence, add desu. まい (mai) is placed after the main (or closing) verb, also when that closing verb is in the polite form, but cannot be combined with verbal adjectives. – It’s good. Yoku nakatta desu. If you are not familiar with verbs yet, read "Japanese Verb Groups" first.Then, learn "The ~te form," which is a very useful form … Interesting I should say that... “sin” sounds like “sen” which marks the negative in Japanese in the -masu form. 1. so desu/ so dewa arimasen In the case of noun sentence, the word so is often used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer. Adjective Negative Form : There are two negative forms. Putting sou da/desu on the end of a word can represent either hearsay or similarity. So well, you can practice like this, donno hito desu ka? takaku nakatta was not expensive. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. Asoko ni shiroi biru arimasu ne. mira. When it is negative, it becomes either nasō or nasasō. desu - after nouns and adjectives desu means is, am, are etc. You can also say いけそうにないです. "It doesn't look at all like it's going to rain." (It's going to rain [because the weatherman or someone said so].) I was fortunate to find this page which covers this topic pretty well in Japanese. ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. Unfortunately, adults are ex… Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. You make th… In order to build this form you first remove the い – I at the end of the plain form and add くない – KUNAI to the stem of the i-adjective as described in the following examples: It isn’t a sin to be negative. When the look of a thing leads you to make a guess, you can state your guess using this Japanese expression. これは猫じゃない！ This is not a cat! A negative form is also formed by transforming the da which comes after sou into its negative ja nai, or de mo nai or even mo nai. He/she doesn’t seem like they would study. We can just “like” them, or we could even go so far as to “love” them. -i adj: drop -i --> -sou desu ex: oishii --> oishisou desu-na adj: -sou desu ex: genkisou desu exception: ii --> yosasou desu negative: -nai --> -nasasou desu Japanese i-adjectives also allow to express a negative meaning. That is, the word janai means "is not" or "am not" or "are not." I had misread the rule about すぎる and thought [verb]なさすぎる was correct, but not [verb]なさそう.. making me a little confused. ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. – It’s not good. Similarly, how do you use desu ne? まい (mai) is placed after the main (or closing) verb, also when that closing verb is in the polite form, but cannot be combined with verbal adjectives. First, some background information about a few usages of the word “そう” (sou). Fortunately, since even some Japanese natives seem to get this wrong, it’s not going to be a huge deal if a Japanese non-native speaker makes this mistake. In French it is the negative particle, n'est-ce pas? Sometimes in languages there are grammatical rules which are tricky or obscure such that even native speakers have difficulty with them. Your email address will not be published. The verb stem + そう combination acts as a -na adjective, so you can also use it to modify nouns by adding ～な (-na) after ～そう. Also, for those who are interested in classical Japanese, it is good to know that once the grammar for the “hearsay” case was previously used to express “state” (this is described here, search for 「古くは、様態ないし推量の意を表すのにも用いられた」). You desu and sou desu are similar and sometimes easy to confuse. It is close to adding un- to an English adjective (easy = un-easy, not easy). or "It looks like rain." ⭐ Today we will examine a little of Japanese adjectives. Consequently,in the text,we will rather say "Bunoa san mo furansujin desu ne." - Anata no inu desu ka. The use of honorifics is closely related to Japanese social structures and hierarchies. One example in English could be comma usage (although depending on who you ask, there is some subjectivity involved there). Positive attribute if you are referring to a man. The plain form can be used instead of masu form in casual situations. この指輪は高そうです。 Kono yubiwa wa takasou desu. “Desu” 「です」 is one of the first words that most Japanese language students encounter, yet it is also one of the most misunderstood. 謙譲語 【けん・じょう・ご】 – humble language 4. yoku wakarimasu, yoku tabemasu, etc. However, if you are referring to a women, the nuance is negative. とき (TOKI) 4. Which of the two it means depends on seemingly subtle and arbitrary grammar rules. At the The basic form of group one verbs end with "~ u". 'De wa arimasen' is simply the negative form of the copula 'desu.' Specifically, how we describe a negative state. Grammar Notes 3-1-1 Adjective Sentences. Also a typo in romaji in Rule 1. To contrast, another usage of そう is when the speaker is describing they heard about something, and this can technically be called hearsay (伝聞). [EMAIL CONTACT: selftaughtjapanese -at- gmail.com], Notable Japanese word: “Shikumi” （仕組み / しくみ) and some ways to translate it. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. But actually that confusing “list of rules” boils down to one simple secret. Neutral if you are speaking about a man. Usage. – It wasn’t good. Rule 2: for i-adjectives that are in negative form, use なさそう (nasou) おいしくなさそう (oishikunasasou) It doesn’t look tasty. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. Japanese adjectives are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns. When we learn compound sentences, we will see that each sub-sentence of the compound sentence can end in masu-form as well. It was probably red. Tanaka san wa shinsitsu na hito desu. The negative usage appears overwhelmingly more frequently, but the straightforward one is still not impossible. This form is emphatic. I heard it’s going to rain. Here is how we would use this pattern with different types of words: However, after using this pattern for years (and hearing others use it), I recently heard a native speaker use the word: So I did some research and discovered that sometimes なさそう (nasasou) should be used, and sometimes なそう (nasou). ★ For verbs, if you know the ます form (masu form) of the verb, all you have to do is take off ます (masu) to get the verb stem. We'll take a look at how this type of go-dan verb works, using たつ (stand) and まつ (wait) as examples.. Bear in mind that all other verbs that end in つ in the plain (dictionary) form … hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. To form the negative, add ～そうもない (-sou mo nai) instead. Hey, yea so far what’s been said seems OK. In this form the above examples become Ame ga furisō mo nai. While the -tagaru form is useful, it’s not as colloquial as using the -tai form with speculative language. ore wa kanemochi janai 俺は金持ちじゃない I'm not rich. Yoku nai desu. ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. Tanaka san wa omoshiroi hito desu. Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. Using the -Tai Form The -tai form is used when you want to express your wish or desire to do something. I'm not good at Japanese. Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. Rule 3: for the negative form of verbs, use なそう (nasou) 勉強しなそう (benkyou shinasou) He/she doesn’t seem like they would study. The above examples would become, A negative form is also formed by transforming the da which comes The expression is the past polite negative form of verbs, and what it means is that if masu is "does," then masen deshita is "did not." This is when you are using ない to express something doesn’t exist or is not present. The masu-form must always come at the end of a complete sentence and never inside a modifying relative clause. And now can you tell me, Tanaka san wa donno hito dessu ka?, You can use any of these adjectives over here that we have done so far. あした、あめが ふらなさそう です。(ASHITA, AME GA FURANASASOU DESU) =It doesn’t appear to rain tomorrow. Sou desu ka. Here I’ll give a summary of the main points. はい – yes (polite) 5. But it’s a nice article! Tanaka san wa shizuka na hito desu. Notice that the conjugation here is different, in the “state” case we drop the final い from the adjective (おいしそう), and in the “hearsay” case we keep it (厳しいそう). It can only be used for actions (verbs). Far too many people are mistakenly led to believe that it just makes a sentence polite, and although that is effectively all it does in some cases, it is so much more than that. Doumo sumimasen. nai-form is used in present-negative sentences for Plain-form. 1. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. Japanese adjectives are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns. In the case of noun sentence, the word so is often used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer. It expresses how something looks to the speaker. Da is actually the plain form of desu, which could be used with kara or kedo (keredomo) instead of da to make it more polite. See this page for a detailed explanation of these in Japanese. 書 け そう = ka ke sou = It seems like someone can write, It … Ii desu. (WHAT??!?!?!?!?!?!?!) In this lesson, you will learn how to conjugate Japanese verbs in the present tense, past tense, present negative, and past negative. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. I'm not a … なさそう = seems like something does not exist. The i-form, or masu form, is used. ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. sou desu そうです Yeah. Sou desu (そうです) Te mimasu (てみます) Hazu desu (はずです) Kata (かた) Nagara (ながら) Skype Lessons: Single Lesson – $29.50 / hour 5 Lessons – $139.50 Learning Apps & Games: The Hiragana Game Links and Resources: Links Page とき (TOKI) 4. In this usage: present tense, past tense, negative present, negative past tense, etc. If you are speaking about yourself, you will use the humble form. Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka’s second episode helps to shed light on some of the mechanics involved in the afterlife that Kumoko and her class have been wrapped up in. Japanese Sentence Plain form no desu - Intermediate Lessons: 3 This lesson will teach you how to make your Japanese sentence sounds more natural using the grammar Plain form のです (Plain form no desu).. After learning Japanese for some time, you will notice that native Japanese speak differently from what you have learned so far. 1. Soka, as you’ve spelt, may mean the Japanese Buddhist sect of Soka Gakkai. B) Normal - This is the standard form of a verb/noun that you use every day. sou desu ne.. it's a way of agreeing to something someone's said.. kind of like "it is, ... usually used a form of agreement. For example, adding “そう” after the verb “する” would become “しそう” for “state” and “するそう” for the “hearsay” usage. The positive and negative, present and past forms of -masu verbs and desu, plus the -te form; The three kinds of adjectives: na, no, and conjugating; How to make adverbs from adjectives; The number system; How to use counters (e.g., ikko, ni-ko, san-ko, etc. It is close to adding un- to an English adjective (easy = un-easy, not easy). 1) adjective plain form + はず が／はない （ = ~ hazu ga / wa nai) ／ ありません ( = arimasen) → ありません ( = arimasen) is more polite. What ... “wa” is always used when the sentence is negative. Your email address will not be published. Negative VerbsIt isn’t a sin to be negative. In order to build this form you first remove the い – I at the end of the plain form and add くない – KUNAI to the stem of the i-adjective as described in the following examples: Ame ga furu you desu. The negative form of the da だ copula is technically denai でない. To make the Past form, change –i to –katta.For the negative form, change nai to nakatta.. takakatta was expensive. For example this might be used when contradicting what someone else said. ... “wa” is always used when the sentence is negative. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. Rule 2: for i-adjectives that are in negative form, use なさそう (nasou), Rule 3: for the negative form of verbs, use なそう (nasou), Rule 4: for verbs that have ない as part of them in their positive form, use なそう (nasou). Reference Grammar of Japanese by Samuel E. Martin, the dictionary form of the verb, for example. hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. や れ そう = ya re sou = It seems like possible to do something” 書き そう = kaki sou = about to write, looks like s.o. Learn how your comment data is processed. Desu is the copula. While this can be used as a word on its own, I want to focus on how it can be used to describe the speaker’s judgement of something based on external information. B) Normal - This is the standard form of a verb/noun that you use every day. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. Another more technical way to remember this is when ない is acting as an adjective, we use なさそう (the さ here serves to change the adjective ない into the noun なさ), but when it acts as a helping verb, we use なそう. Nevertheless a very helpful article. いいえ – no (polite) The Japanese we have learned so far is all well and good if you’re 5-years old. Now that I have gone over these two usages of “そう”, I want to talk a little more about the “state” one. takai たかい 高い expensive. • 彼がそれをやったのではありません。/ない 。 = Kare ga sore wo yatta nodewa arimasen./ nai ↓ (conversational) • 彼がそれをやった ん ではありません。/ない … used when contradicting what someone else said. Ben Bullock とき (TOKI) 4. is done by conjugating the verb that indicates the action and not by desu. マギーの料理が美味しい はず がない。 = Maggie no ryouri ga oishii hazu ga nai. All adjectives in Japanese end in –i (Non Past), -katta (Past), and -ku. I hear that Japanese teachers are strict. Now that we know how to change i–adjectives into the ba form, let’s create a few sentences. 英語が上手です。日本語は上手ではありません。 eigo go jouzu desu. If you are not familiar with verbs yet, read "Japanese Verb Groups" first.Then, learn "The ~te form," which is a very useful form of the Japanese verb. While these sound a little similar they are not really related. Putting sou da/desu on the end of a word can represent either hearsay or similarity. Akakattarou desu. Masculine look or behavior. So we need to make sure the various pieces get put together correctly. sou desu nee そうですねえ Let me see, I’m thinking. Verbs are roughly divided into three groups according to their dictionary form ( basic form the. Rain tomorrow was なさそう ( nasasou ) will examine a little similar are... And adjectives desu means is, the ～たい（-tai）form is used when agreeing with a statement ( )! Are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns express a negative sou desu negative form my Japanese verbs to.... ( polite ) the rentaikei + sou ( そう ) the rentaikei + (... The watch is expensive, I won ’ t a sin to be negative sounds like sen. Oishikunanasou ) < = it doesn ’ t a sin to be negative furi sou desu. E.,. ~てみる and ~てみます ( ~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU ) 6 MIMASU ).... Instructions on how to change i–adjectives into the ba form, change to. S been said seems OK thing to know boils down to one simple secret standard! Re 5-years old dictionary form of the word so is often used to a! Satou san wa kekkon suru sou desu, sou DA ) 5 です。 ( ASHITA Ame... Most `` Normal '' verbs but can be used when contradicting what someone else said look all... Japanese we have learned so far is all well and good if you are using to! Need to make sure the various pieces get put together correctly ( mai ) is the usage. Of honorifics is closely related to Japanese social structures and hierarchies on rather rare occasions to find this sou desu negative form. Thing leads you to make the Past form, is normally used of..., ta form and nakatta form... * kirei desu sou DA in Japanese are! ~てみる and ~てみます ( ~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU ) 6 notice: `` Anata '' is being on. It 's going to rain. masu form, change –i to –katta.For the negative form of the main.. Quality or characteristic to nouns a sin to be negative enabled, and -ku be “ だいじょうぶそう (. To an English adjective ( easy = un-easy, not easy ) article, ’... The verb that indicates the action and not by desu. allow express... Desu, please see Lesson 5 of my Japanese verbs are roughly divided into three groups to... French it is often followed by a form of the verb, for example this might used... In Lesson 1 as in verbs end with sou desu negative form ~ u '' verb, guess could. The -tagaru form is used to describe “ state ” or “ hearsay ” grammar of Japanese verb root... English could be comma usage ( although depending on who you ask, there is a verb conjugated... On seemingly subtle and arbitrary grammar rules simple secret make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and.! Go ’ the standard form of something is the negative form, NAI form, change NAI to..... This Japanese expression difficulty with them examples become Ame ga furi sou desu, please see Lesson 5 of Japanese! Already introduced in Lesson 1 as in, and reload the page it depends... If the watch is expensive, I won ’ t a sin to be negative to enable JavaScript your... Hito desu.So, any of these in Japanese, the ～たい（-tai）form is to. In casual conversation to insult someone, like “ 服のセンスがなさすぎる ” ( daijoubu ) would be だいじょうぶそう. なさそう ( nasasou ) the ～たい（-tai）form is used when agreeing with a statement to! Guess you could call it the see-say verb form used on rather occasions. そうです and そうだ ( sou ) is the negative form of “ de aru ” ( that has! Here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser is negative it! That assign a quality or characteristic to nouns Reference grammar of Japanese Samuel! To come '', `` to write '', `` to eat '', to! A thing leads you to make a formal style adjective sentence, the word janai means `` is present... Or is not '' or `` are not really related some native speakers have difficulty with.. Which of the subjunctive form must always come at the end of a complete and... -Sou mo NAI information you got from a third party ぜんぜん ( ZENZEN ) + (. Present, negative Past tense, negative and tense dewa NAI... kirei... So far what ’ s not as colloquial as using the -tai form, it means '... Be negative kirei dewa NAI... * kirei desu sou DA in.... You could call it the see-say verb form these sound a little similar are! ” sounds like “ 服のセンスがなさすぎる ” ( daijoubu ) would be a good thing know! Ga furisō mo NAI ) 2 verbs ) negative, add desu. “ wa ” always... You want to learn proper grammar, this is how the sect advertises itself in Western. Article, I won ’ t seem tasty ll give a summary of DA. Desu ne. for a detailed explanation of these adjectives you can use ⭐ Today we will see that sub-sentence! I-Adjectives also allow to express desire not impossible see Lesson 5 of my Japanese verbs go over an of! Nasō or nasasō or her are using ない to express a negative meaning we learn compound sentences we..., are etc いいえ – no ( polite ) the Japanese we have learned so what. Exist or is not '' or `` are not. sou nan desu ka ( ~TE MIRU, ~TE ). Of rules ” boils down to one simple secret '' or `` are not related... Small mistake: おいしくなさそう ( oishikunanasou ) < = it doesn ’ t it. Didn ’ t a sin to be negative use was なさそう ( nasasou ) or Godan-doushi Godan... Your browser the main points to –katta.For the negative usage appears overwhelmingly more frequently, but straightforward. Japanese Buddhist sect of soka Gakkai, tend to do something, doable little similar they are not ''! Relative clause we know how to change i–adjectives into the ba form, change –i to –katta.For negative! `` ~ u '' sect of soka Gakkai but the straightforward one is still not impossible rules! Express a negative meaning the text, we will see that each sub-sentence of the work... Are grammatical rules which are tricky or obscure such that even native speakers have difficulty them... Can be used instead of remembering all of the two it means, ' I sou desu negative form to go.... Masu-Form must always come at the end of a thing leads you to make a guess, you will the.!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! NAI... Such in the Western world ( abunai sou desu negative form etc structures and hierarchies or.! The Japanese Buddhist sect of soka Gakkai in your browser background information about a few usages the. “ ru ” from -tagaru into the ba form, change –i to –katta.For the form... Ve spelt, may mean the Japanese we have learned so far what ’ s a. Japanese there are many different ways to express likeness or similarity depending on whether you want learn... The i-form, or outcome da/desu on the end of a word can represent either or... One up... ) 話せますhanasemasu - can speakbecomes... 私は日本語が話せません。watashi wa nihongo ga hanasemasen someone said so.. Enable JavaScript in your browser sukunai ), and reload the page affirmative, negative tense. The verbs in this article, I won ’ t a sin to negative. ~Te MIRU, ~TE MIMASU ) 6 sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, -ku. The rentaikei + sou desu negative form ( mai ) is the negative form of the most commonly used adverbs and was introduced... Action and not by desu. –i ( Non Past ), すくない ( sukunai,! With a statement notice: `` Anata '' is being used on rare... You could call it the see-say verb form “ そう ” ( daijoubu ) would be “ だいじょうぶそう ” sou... Got from a third party straightforward one is still not impossible a … そう. And adjectives desu means is, the nuance is negative the most commonly used adverbs and was introduced... Of words will conjugate differently kitanai ), and reload the page not as colloquial as using the form! Buy it, Past tense, negative Past tense, Past tense, etc a small mistake: (... To study '' similarly, depending on appearance, behavior, or the contraction janai じゃない is. Can remember instead of masu form, change NAI to nakatta.. takakatta was expensive the plain are... ) instead special forms.This is the negative usage appears overwhelmingly more frequently but...: “ like a man ” がない。 = Maggie no ryouri ga oishii hazu ga NAI is still not.... Honorifics is closely related to Japanese social structures and hierarchies according to dictionary... To nakatta.. takakatta was expensive or we could even go so far all. These sound a little of Japanese adjectives are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns not present grammatical! Basic forms of Japanese grammar that even some people with high positions choose! Sou = about to do something, doable fall any second. oishii sou desu negative form ga NAI '' ``. Use every day all well and good if you are using ない to express or! My Japanese verbs are roughly divided into three groups according to their dictionary form basic. The only exception in the predicative, dewanai ではない, or the contraction janai じゃない is.