The Engine Room: Verbs & Adjectives
Nouns name the world, but verbs and adjectives make it move and sparkle. This chapter delivers the core set — roughly 45 verbs and 40 adjectives that power the majority of everyday Japanese sentences. Combined with the nouns from previous chapters, you are about to control several thousand possible sentences!
Two notes before we start:
- Verbs appear here in the polite 〜ます (masu) form — the form you'll actually use with people. How to conjugate them (past, negative, dictionary form) is the star of the upcoming Verb Basics chapter.
- Adjectives come in two families — い-adjectives and な-adjectives — marked in the tables below. Why the distinction matters becomes clear in the Adjective Basics chapter. For now, just tag each word with its family as you learn it.
Don't binge-memorize! Take one table per day, and say each example sentence aloud. Verbs stick when your mouth learns them, not just your eyes.
1. Daily Routine Verbs
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 起きます | okimasu | to wake up, get up | 7時に起きます。(Shichiji ni okimasu.) — I get up at 7. |
| 寝ます | nemasu | to sleep, go to bed | 11時に寝ます。(Jūichiji ni nemasu.) — I go to bed at 11. |
| 食べます | tabemasu | to eat | パンを食べます。— I eat bread. |
| 飲みます | nomimasu | to drink | コーヒーを飲みます。— I drink coffee. |
| 行きます | ikimasu | to go | 学校に行きます。— I go to school. |
| 来ます | kimasu | to come | 友だちが来ます。— A friend is coming. |
| 帰ります | kaerimasu | to return, go home | 6時に帰ります。— I go home at 6. |
| 働きます | hatarakimasu | to work | 銀行で働きます。— I work at a bank. |
| 休みます | yasumimasu | to rest, take a day off | 日曜日は休みます。— I rest on Sundays. |
| します | shimasu | to do | テニスをします。— I play tennis. |
| 勉強します | benkyō shimasu | to study | 日本語を勉強します。— I study Japanese. |
| 買い物します | kaimono shimasu | to go shopping | スーパーで買い物します。— I shop at the supermarket. |
Meet the superstar します (shimasu, "to do"): attach it to activity nouns and you get instant verbs — 勉強します (study), 買い物します (shop), 料理します (cook), サッカーをします (play soccer). One verb, hundreds of uses.
2. Senses & Communication Verbs
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 見ます | mimasu | to see, watch | テレビを見ます。— I watch TV. |
| 聞きます | kikimasu | to listen, hear; also to ask! | 音楽を聞きます。— I listen to music. |
| 読みます | yomimasu | to read | 本を読みます。— I read a book. |
| 書きます | kakimasu | to write | 手紙を書きます。— I write a letter. |
| 話します | hanashimasu | to speak, talk | 日本語を話します。— I speak Japanese. |
| 言います | iimasu | to say | もう一度言います。— I'll say it once more. |
| 会います | aimasu | to meet | 友だちに会います。— I meet a friend. |
| 教えます | oshiemasu | to teach, tell | 先生が教えます。— The teacher teaches. |
| 習います | naraimasu | to learn (from someone) | ピアノを習います。— I take piano lessons. |
| わかります | wakarimasu | to understand | わかります!— I understand! |
わかります and its negative わかりません ("I don't understand") might be the most honest, useful sentence pair a learner owns. Use them freely — they're a request for help, not an admission of defeat!
3. Movement & Everyday Action Verbs
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 歩きます | arukimasu | to walk | 駅まで歩きます。— I walk to the station. |
| 走ります | hashirimasu | to run | 毎朝走ります。— I run every morning. |
| 乗ります | norimasu | to ride, get on | 電車に乗ります。— I take the train. |
| 降ります | orimasu | to get off | 次の駅で降ります。— I get off at the next station. |
| 待ちます | machimasu | to wait | ここで待ちます。— I'll wait here. |
| 買います | kaimasu | to buy | くつを買います。— I buy shoes. |
| 売ります | urimasu | to sell | 店で売ります。— They sell it at the shop. |
| 作ります | tsukurimasu | to make | ケーキを作ります。— I make a cake. |
| 使います | tsukaimasu | to use | パソコンを使います。— I use a computer. |
| 開けます | akemasu | to open (something) | 窓を開けます。— I open the window. |
| 閉めます | shimemasu | to close (something) | ドアを閉めます。— I close the door. |
| つけます | tsukemasu | to turn on | 電気をつけます。— I turn on the lights. |
| 消します | keshimasu | to turn off, erase | テレビを消します。— I turn off the TV. |
| あげます | agemasu | to give | プレゼントをあげます。— I give a present. |
| もらいます | moraimasu | to receive | 手紙をもらいます。— I receive a letter. |
4. Fun & Leisure Verbs
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 遊びます | asobimasu | to play, hang out | 友だちと遊びます。— I hang out with friends. |
| 泳ぎます | oyogimasu | to swim | 海で泳ぎます。— I swim in the sea. |
| 歌います | utaimasu | to sing | 歌を歌います。— I sing a song. |
| 写真をとります | shashin o torimasu | to take photos | 写真をとります。— I take a photo. |
| 旅行します | ryokō shimasu | to travel | 日本を旅行します。— I travel around Japan. |
Two special verbs deserve a spotlight now, because they mean "to exist" and power the sentence "there is / I have": あります (arimasu — for things) and います (imasu — for people and animals). 時間があります (jikan ga arimasu, "I have time"); ねこがいます (neko ga imasu, "there's a cat"). Their full story — including why Japanese splits existence into living and non-living — comes in Verb Basics.
5. い-Adjectives: The Antonym Parade
Adjectives lodge best in pairs of opposites. All of these are い-adjectives:
| Adjective | Meaning | Opposite | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 大きい (ōkii) | big | 小さい (chiisai) | small |
| 高い (takai) | expensive; tall | 安い (yasui) / 低い (hikui) | cheap / low |
| 新しい (atarashii) | new | 古い (furui) | old (things — not people!) |
| いい (ii) | good | 悪い (warui) | bad |
| 長い (nagai) | long | 短い (mijikai) | short |
| 速い (hayai) | fast | 遅い (osoi) | slow; late |
| 近い (chikai) | near | 遠い (tōi) | far |
| 難しい (muzukashii) | difficult | やさしい (yasashii) | easy; also kind! |
| 暑い (atsui) | hot (weather) | 寒い (samui) | cold (weather) |
| 暖かい (atatakai) | warm | 涼しい (suzushii) | cool (weather) |
| 楽しい (tanoshii) | fun, enjoyable | つまらない (tsumaranai) | boring |
| おもしろい (omoshiroi) | interesting, funny | — | |
| 忙しい (isogashii) | busy | ひまな (hima na) | free, not busy (careful — this one is a な-adjective!) |
| うれしい (ureshii) | happy, glad | 悲しい (kanashii) | sad |
Weather-word warning: 暑い (atsui) is hot weather, while 熱い (also atsui!) from the food chapter is hot to the touch — same sound, different kanji. And 寒い (samui) is cold weather, but cold drinks are 冷たい (tsumetai). Japanese is precise about temperature!
6. な-Adjectives: The Second Family
| Adjective | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| きれい（な） | kirei (na) | pretty, clean — the classic な-adjective that looks like an い-adjective! |
| 元気（な） | genki (na) | healthy, energetic |
| 静か（な） | shizuka (na) | quiet |
| にぎやか（な） | nigiyaka (na) | lively, bustling |
| 有名（な） | yūmei (na) | famous |
| 親切（な） | shinsetsu (na) | kind, helpful |
| 便利（な） | benri (na) | convenient |
| 大変（な） | taihen (na) | tough, awful — also "very" as an adverb |
| 好き（な） | suki (na) | liked, favorite — "I like ~" is 〜が好きです! |
| きらい（な） | kirai (na) | disliked |
| 上手（な） | jōzu (na) | skilled, good at |
| 下手（な） | heta (na) | unskilled, bad at |
The two most beloved patterns in beginner Japanese live here:
- 〜が好きです (ga suki desu) — "I like ~": 日本の食べ物が好きです。(Nihon no tabemono ga suki desu.) — I like Japanese food.
- 〜が上手です (ga jōzu desu) — "is good at ~": 母は料理が上手です。(Haha wa ryōri ga jōzu desu.) — My mother is good at cooking.
Sharp-eyed warning: きれい (kirei) and きらい (kirai) look like い-adjectives because they end in い — but both are な-adjectives, and they differ by ONE kana from each other! きれいな人 = a pretty person; きらいな人 = a person you dislike. Mixing them up is a legendary beginner blunder — check twice before complimenting anyone.
7. Put Them to Work
The instant-usability pattern for every adjective: [adjective] + です. For every verb: [noun] + を/に/で + [verb]. Try reading these aloud:
この本はおもしろいです。(Kono hon wa omoshiroi desu.) — This book is interesting.
東京はにぎやかです。(Tōkyō wa nigiyaka desu.) — Tokyo is lively.
毎日、日本語を勉強します。(Mainichi, nihongo o benkyō shimasu.) — I study Japanese every day.
週末、友だちに会います。それから、映画を見ます。(Shūmatsu, tomodachi ni aimasu. Sorekara, eiga o mimasu.) — On the weekend I'll meet a friend. After that, we'll watch a movie.
Summary & Key Takeaways
- ~45 core verbs, in polite 〜ます form, cover daily routine, communication, movement, and leisure.
- します converts activity nouns into verbs: 勉強します, 買い物します, テニスをします.
- あります (things) vs います (people/animals) both mean "to exist / there is / to have".
- Learn adjectives in antonym pairs: 大きい/小さい, 新しい/古い, 暑い/寒い…
- Two adjective families: い-adjectives (おいしい, 高い) and な-adjectives (きれいな, 静かな) — tag each new one now, conjugate them later.
- Beloved patterns: 〜が好きです (I like ~), 〜が上手です (good at ~).
- Traps: きれい (pretty) vs きらい (disliked); 暑い weather vs 熱い touch; やさしい = both "easy" and "kind".
- Vocabulary section complete — you now hold ~500 words. Time to wire them together: on to Grammar Foundations!