Japanese Basic Grammar Guide Part III – Japanese Particles (No, To, Mo, Kara, Made, Ga) の、と、から、まで、が

5. no – の

の Can be used to express possession of an object – the following sentences show that it is an easy sentence pattern to learn and remember.
[Posession]
watashi no kuruma – My car.

tomodachi no hon – My friend’s book.
友達の本
の Can also be used to express affiliation to an organization in Japanese such as the following sentences.
[Affiliation]
A-sha no shain – An employee of Company A
A 社社員
A-Daigaku no gakusei – A Student of University A
A-大学学生
Further to this – の can be used to describe an attribute of a person or object’s identity.  Just like in English – we have the ability to do this by saying that someone is a “Japanese Teacher” – we can use の in the same way.
[Attribute (Type/Nature)]
Nihongo no sensei – Japanese Teacher
日本語先生
ichigo no shabetto – Strawberry Sherbert
いちごのシャーベット
Additionally, の can be used for Apposition / when there is a relationship between two people
[Apposition]
Tomodachi no Yoko-San – My friend yoko
友達よこ
otto no Tomu – My Husband Tom
トム
There is one more use for the の particle – which is using it as a pronoun.  We have the same pattern in english – we can say “the X one”.
[Pronoun]
akai no – The red one.
赤い
atsui no – The hot one.
暑い


6. to – と

The to – と particle in Japanese can be used to signify partnership in action – or to form pairs – here are several examples of the Japanese particle in use.
[A partner in an action]
Tomodachi to eiga o mimashita. – I saw a movie with my friend.
友達映画を見ました。
Eri-san to kekkon shimashita. – I married Eri-san.
エリさん結婚しました。
Shacho to hanashimasu. – I will speak with the CEO/Boss.
社長話します。
[Parallel phrases] pan to tomago – Bread and Eggs
パン卵。

7. mo – も

The mo も particle is used to signify similarity and agreement in Japanese. Additionally it can be used to add emphasis to a particular statement in Japanese.
[Sameness / Agreement]
Kore mo onegaishimasu  – I’ll have this too please.
これお願いします.
Watashi mo eiga ga suki desu. – I also like movies.
映画が好きです.
[Emphasis]
Wain o go-hon mo nomimashita. – I drank five bottles of wine!
ワインを五本飲みました.

8. kara – から

Kara is used in Japanese to signify the origin of duration or origin of motion.
[Origin of duration or motion] Uchi kara gakko made sanjuppun kakarimasu.  – It takes thirty minutes to get from our house to the school.
うちから学校まで三十分かかります.

9. made – まで

Just like with Kara – Made (まで) is used to signify the end point of a duration or motion.
[Termination of duration or motion]
Ku-ji kara juichi-ji made benkyo shimasu. – I study from nine until eleven o’clock.
九時から十一時まで勉強します。

10. Ga – が

The Ga (が) Particle can be used for several cases.  Although the particle “ga” essentially follows the subject of a sentence, it sometimes provides a function similar to other particles.  Because this can make “ga” confusing to use, try to remember the five patterns below.
[The subject of an interrogative sentence that uses an interrogative word]
Dare ga kimasu ka – Who is coming?
来ますか?
Itsu ga ii desu ka.  – When would be a good time?
いついいですか ?
[The subject of a sentence denoting possession or location]
Uchi ni pasokon ga arimasu.  – We have a computer at our home.
うちにパソコンあります。
Toire ni neko ga imasu.  – There is a cat in the restroom.
トイレに猫います。
[The subject of an embedded clause modifying a noun phrase] Kore wa Betoben ga tsukutta kyoku desu. – This is a piece of music that is composed by Beethoven.
これはベートーヴェン作った曲です。
[Objects] (1) suki, kirai, jouzu, heta (Like, Dislike, Be Good At, Be Bad At)
好き、嫌い、上手、下手
Sakka ga suki desu.  I like Soccer.
サッカ好きです。
(2) wakaru, dekiru, mieru, kikoeru (understand, can do, can see, can hear)
わかる、できる、見える、聞こえる
Koko kara Fuji-san o miru koto ga dekimasu.  – It is possible to see Mount Fuji from here.
ここから富士山を見ることできます。
(3) hoshii, shitai (want/need, want to do)
欲しい、したい
Atarashii terebi ga hoshii desu.  – I want a new TV.
新いテレビ欲しいです。
Nihongo ga benkyou shitai desu.  – I want to study Japanese.
日本語勉強したいです。
[An aspect of part of the subject.] Imoto wa kami ga nagai.  – My younger sister has long hair.
妹うは髪長い。
Nihon wa hanzai ga sukunai.
日本は犯罪少ない。

Nihongo Fun & Easy, image, photo, illustration, picture

Nihongo Fun & Easy

Content originally appeared in Nihongo Fun & Easy – written by Teachers from Coto Japanese Academy – Get it here:

If you find this article helpful, Check out our other Basic Japanese Grammar Guide Series
Basic Grammar Guide Part I
Basic Grammar Guide Part II
Basic Grammar Guide Part IV


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