| No, this is not the Japanese version of Shakespeare's Hamlet.
On this page we will be discussing all the intricacies of the verb
"to be". Many grammatical constructions rely heavily on
this verb, however there are also many occasions where it cannot
be used.
Constructing "to be"
Unlike most languages the Japanese language doesn't have a single
verb meaning "to be". It is constructed from the particle
で (de) and the verb ある (aru) meaning "there is" or "there
are". The particle で (de) is the instrumental particle and
cannot be combined with the subject particle が (ga) which makes
for some disparate constructions.
The informal version of "to be" is である (de aru), which
is often abbreviated to だ (da). The polite version of である (de aru)
is logically であります (de arimasu), but besides this combination "to
be" can also be constructed with the very polite synonym of
あります (arimasu), ございます (gozaimasu). The resulting でございます (de gozaimasu)
is the very polite version of である (de aru). Typically this combination
is again often abbreviated to です (desu), which then loses that extreme
level of politeness again.
All this abbreviating and combining finally results in five different
possible words for "to be", here listed from informal
to very polite.
だ (da) (informal)
である (de aru) (semi-polite)
です (desu) (polite)
であります (de arimasu) (polite)
でございます (de gozaimasu) (very polite)
Using the verb "to be"
From here on we will have a look on where "to be" can
be used and where it can't.
| |
です (desu) |
だ (da) |
| Before the quoting "と" (to) |
× |
× |
| Before the question particle "か" (ka) |
○ |
× |
| After verbal adjectives (incl. "nai", "tai",
and "rashii") |
○ |
× |
| After the rentaikei and ren'youkei "+そう" (sou) |
○ |
○ |
| After nouns |
○ |
○ |
| After "・・・ます" (masu) |
× |
× |
| After "・・・ません" (masen) |
Past tense:
でした |
× |
| Before the particle "の" (no) |
× |
だ⇒な |
| After the particle "の" (no) |
○ |
○ |
| Before the particle "ので" (node) |
○ |
だ⇒な |
| Before the particle "のに" (noni) |
○ |
だ⇒な |
| After the rentaikei and ren'youkei "+な" (na) |
× |
× |
| After the rentaikei "+よう" (you) |
○ |
○ |
"To be" and its conjugations
Since だ (da) and です (desu) are contractions they have some irregular
conjugations.
| |
だ |
です |
| Past tense |
だった |
でした |
| ～て (-te) form |
で |
で |
| Dubitative |
だろう |
でしょう |
| ～たり (-tari) form |
だったり |
でしたり |
| Dubitative past tense |
だったろう |
でしたろう |
| Negative form |
ではない / じゃない |
ではありません / じゃありません
ではないです / じゃないです |
| Conditional form |
だったら |
でしたら |
| Negative subjunctive form |
ではあるまい
じゃあるまい |
ではありますまい
じゃありますまい |
"To be" and verbs
In Japanese you can follow the main verb (except "to be"
and "～ます" (-masu)) or verbal adjective, if it is in the
rentaikei conjugation, with a combination of の (no) and any variation
of the present tense of "to be" to give a sentence a little
emphasis. のだ (no da) and のです (no desu) are often abbreviated to
んだ (n da) and んです (n desu).
| |
友達がケニアに行ったのだ。(Tomodachi ga Kenia ni itta
no da.)
My friend went to Kenya.
友達がケニアに行ったんだ。(Tomodachi ga Kenia ni itta
n da.)
My friend went to Kenya. |
| |
"To be" and verbal adjectives
Only two variations of "to be" can be used in combination
with verbal adjectives. These combinations are です (desu) and でございます
(de gozaimasu). These variations, in the present tense, follow the
rentaikei conjugation of the verbal adjective to make the sentence
polite or very polite (depending on which of the two variations
you use).
| |
あの本は高かったです。(Kono hon wa takakatta desu.)
That book was expensive.
古くないでございます。(Furukunai de gozaimasu.)
It isn't old. |
| |
"To be" and the question particle
か (ka)
Every variation of "to be" can be combined with the question
particle か (ka), except だ (da). If you were intending to use だ (da)
you have two options.
1. replace だ (da) with another variation of "to be"
2. leave だ (da) out altogether.
| |
池田さんの子供ですか。(Ikeda-san no kodomo desu
ka.)
Is it Mrs. Ikeda's child?
池田さんの子供か。(Ikeda-san no kodomo ka.)
Is it Mrs. Ikeda's child? |
| |
"To be" and the past tense
The contracted forms of "to be", namely だ (da) and です
(desu), have irregular past tenses. These past tenses make more
sense when looking at the past tenses of the non-contracted forms.
Related pages:
Ren'youkei
+ た (ta)
Ren'youkei
+ て (te) |
