Japanese Particles: は, が, を, に, で, と and の

Japanese doesn't rely on word order alone to show meaning. Small words called particles follow nouns and mark their role. Learning the main ones unlocks the language.

The essential particles

Particle	Role	Example
は (wa)	topic marker	わたしは学生です。 — I am a student.
が (ga)	subject marker	犬がいます。 — There is a dog.
を (o)	direct object	水を飲みます。 — I drink water.
に (ni)	time, destination, indirect object	七時に起きます。 — I get up at seven.
へ (e)	direction	学校へ行きます。 — I go to school.
で (de)	place of action, means	家で食べます。 — I eat at home.
と (to)	"and", "with"	友達と行きます。 — I go with a friend.
の (no)	possession, "of"	わたしの本 — my book
も (mo)	"also"	わたしも学生です。 — I'm a student too.
から (kara)	from	東京から来ました。 — I came from Tokyo.
まで (made)	until, as far as	五時まで働きます。 — I work until five.
か (ka)	question marker	学生ですか。 — Are you a student?

Wa and ga

は introduces what you're talking about. が points to new information or the subject of a description:

• 田中さんは先生です。 — (As for) Mr Tanaka, he is a teacher.
• だれが来ましたか。 — Who came? (a question word takes が)

Ni and de

Both can mean "at", but differently:

• に shows existence and destinations: 図書館にいます。 — I'm at the library. 東京に行きます。 — I'm going to Tokyo.
• で shows where an action takes place: 図書館で勉強します。 — I study at the library.

The particle の

の links nouns, like "of" or "'s":

• 日本語の先生 — a Japanese language teacher
• 先生の本 — the teacher's book

Particle position

Particles always come after the word they mark, which is why they are called postpositions:

わたしは (I + topic) 毎日 (every day) 学校で (at school) 日本語を (Japanese + object) 勉強します (study).

Tips

1. Learn は, を, に, で first.
2. Learn each with a sample sentence.
3. Use the dictionary to see particles in examples.

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