Japanese Lesson #4: Negation and past of です/だ
I forgot to include hiragana and katakana exercises. Oh, well, I'll do it next time. Probably. ._.
I really need a Japanese-related icon...
- Negation of です
In previous lessons, we learnt that the equivalent of the verb "to be" in Japanese is です.
わたしは にほんじん です。 = I am Japanese.
これは ほん です。 = This is a book.
To make these sentences negative, all you have to do is replace です with ではありません. (Pronounced "de wa arimasen", which means that the は is a particle).
わたしは にほんじん ではありません。 = I am not Japanese.
これは ほん ではありません。 = This is not a book.
In a slightly more informal setting (spoken language), you can also say じゃありません.
わたしは にほんじん じゃありません。 = I'm not Japanese.
これは ほん じゃありません。 = This isn't a book.
- Past form of です
To put です in the past, just replace it with でした.
わたしは こども でした。 = I was a child.
【こども】= child
- Past form of ではありません
In order to put the negative ではありません in the past, simply add でした.
あれは ひこうき ではありません でした。 = That was not an airplane.
【ひこうき】= airplane
- Informal language
In informal settings, and especially in manga, you'll often see だ instead of です.
ぼくは にほんじん だ。 = I'm Japanese. (informal)
ぼく = I (more commonly used by boys and young men)
I'd rather not get into the negative and past forms of だ right now, although they work in the same way as the formal forms. But in case you need it, here's a full table so that you can see what they're like.
Formal
Informal
Present
です
だ
Negative present
ではありません
じゃありません
ではない
じゃない
Past
でした
だった
Negative past
ではありませんでした
じゃありませんでした
ではなかった
じゃなかった
One more titbit about だ: in manga and anime series, it's fairly common to see a character who speaks in the Kansai dialect (Spain from Hetalia, for example). In this dialect, they use やinstead of だ. There are also dialects in which they use じゃ instead of だ. This is especially common in the southern dialects. This map shows you which regions of Japan use だ, や and/or じゃ.
I really need a Japanese-related icon...
- Negation of です
In previous lessons, we learnt that the equivalent of the verb "to be" in Japanese is です.
わたしは にほんじん です。 = I am Japanese.
これは ほん です。 = This is a book.
To make these sentences negative, all you have to do is replace です with ではありません. (Pronounced "de wa arimasen", which means that the は is a particle).
わたしは にほんじん ではありません。 = I am not Japanese.
これは ほん ではありません。 = This is not a book.
In a slightly more informal setting (spoken language), you can also say じゃありません.
わたしは にほんじん じゃありません。 = I'm not Japanese.
これは ほん じゃありません。 = This isn't a book.
- Past form of です
To put です in the past, just replace it with でした.
わたしは こども でした。 = I was a child.
【こども】= child
- Past form of ではありません
In order to put the negative ではありません in the past, simply add でした.
あれは ひこうき ではありません でした。 = That was not an airplane.
【ひこうき】= airplane
- Informal language
In informal settings, and especially in manga, you'll often see だ instead of です.
ぼくは にほんじん だ。 = I'm Japanese. (informal)
ぼく = I (more commonly used by boys and young men)
I'd rather not get into the negative and past forms of だ right now, although they work in the same way as the formal forms. But in case you need it, here's a full table so that you can see what they're like.
Formal
Informal
Present
です
だ
Negative present
ではありません
じゃありません
ではない
じゃない
Past
でした
だった
Negative past
ではありませんでした
じゃありませんでした
ではなかった
じゃなかった
One more titbit about だ: in manga and anime series, it's fairly common to see a character who speaks in the Kansai dialect (Spain from Hetalia, for example). In this dialect, they use やinstead of だ. There are also dialects in which they use じゃ instead of だ. This is especially common in the southern dialects. This map shows you which regions of Japan use だ, や and/or じゃ.
