Three types of sentences...

In Japanese, sentences are organized but can be quite complicated when you start to make complex sentences. However, a sentence can be made by simply using only one word. These single words that can create a sentence are not only sentences themselves, but the core of every Japanese sentence.

Japanese: The Spoken Language refers to these core parts as a "predicate," and I will also refer to them as such. Every Japanese sentence is built around these.

There are three different types of words that can be used to make a predicate. Depending on what textbook or reference you are looking at, they will be organized different ways and called different things, but the best way to view them is by what forms they can take. If you group them that way, you'll always know how to use them in your sentences.

THIS WILL MAKE A LOT MORE SENSE ONCE YOU START MAKING SENTENCES. This is not something you need to memorize or anything now, but it's important to know that there are three types of words. Once you start using Japanese, you'll notice that pretty much every complete sentence can be classed in one of these three ways based on what kind of predicate it has, and when you're making more complex sentences or learning more difficult grammar, it will become much easier if you're able to recognize which of the three forms you are using.

Some people don't even realize there are only three forms and just think they are all "sentences." Or some people don't try to classify words this way, and instead classify them by how they translate into English (so if a word is translated into English as an English adjective, they will call it an adjective in Japanese, even if it's not classified in the same group as other words they're also calling adjectives... :\ I think this is too confusing and makes learning Japanese harder).

Anyway, let's look at these three types. Remember, don't try to memorize this, just look over it, and if you're already familiar with Japanese and making your own sentences, you will know exactly what kinds of words I'm talking about, and you'll be able to realize they fall into these three groups. If you are still new and still lost on how to make sentences, read over it once and just remember that there are important words that will fall into these three groups, and then come back to this later if you need to:

"Verbal" class

This is a class of words that ends in -u sounds. Most of the time, you will hear these called "verbs." Here are some examples:

分かる wakaru - to understand
行く iku - to go
食べる taberu - to eat
飲む nomu - to drink
泳ぐ oyogu - to swim

These all translate roughly into words that we also call "verbs" in English, but that is not always the case; for example, 見える mieru can easily be translated as "visible." In English, "visible" is not a verb, but in Japanese, this word takes the same form and is used just like those other words that we're calling verbs. This is one reason why I think it's better to not think of them as translations of English.

Anyway, you can tell these words by some distinct features:

1. They all end in an "-u" sound. They can end in u, ku, su, tu/tsu, mu, ru, gu, or bu.
2. They all are able to take a 'desumasu' form that ends in ます masu.
3. They all are able to conjugate in ways that end in た ta or だ da, and the masu form can likewise become a ました masita/mashita form.

Of course, you don't have to worry about what all of that means right now... but the point is mainly that just because a word ends in an u sound doesn't mean it is this 'verbal' type of word. But all verbals can do those things (and more things), so that's how you can tell that's the kind of word you're dealing with.

"Adjectival" class

This is another type of word that can make a sentence and be a predicate. They are words that end in an 'i' sound. Sometimes you will hear these called "adjectives," but like the "verbs," they will not always translate into adjectives in English. Sometimes you will also hear other words called adjectives that are not these. But we're just talking about the way the words are formed and used here.

Here are some examples:

やさしい yasasii/yasashii - kind, nice
美しい utukusii/utsukushii - beautiful
いい ii - good, nice, okay, etc.
赤い akai - red

These words share some distinct features:

1. They all end in い i.
2. They all can take a 'desumasu' form that is simply made by adding です desu.
3. They all can conjugate in a way that ends in かった katta, and the desumasu form ends in かったです kattadesu.

Like I said before, the point is just to note that not every word that ends in i is in this group, but any word that fits those 3 key points is part of this group.

"Nominal" class

This last class is a bit harder to define because the words don't all share many common properties. They can look like pretty much anything. While they often refer to names and nouns, sometimes they refer to concepts and even concepts that, when translated, are descriptive and can be called "adjectives" in English; however, the point here is that in order to make a sentence with these words, you will always use them in the same way.

Here are some examples:

日本 nippon - Japan
人 hito - person
お茶 otya/ocha - tea
愛 ai - love
ラーメン raamen - ramen (type of noodle)

These words all share a single distinct feature:

1. To make a sentence with these, you add the copula. Standard form of this is だ da and the desumasu form of this is です desu.

And that's all you really need to know about this group for now. While it is not important for simply using them as predicates and making sentences, note that words that are organized in structure this way are separated into two groups. They, most of the time, are used the same, but in rare cases you will have to choose between using no or na with them. Some people and texts will classify the na words as "adjectives" and then have complicated rules for what to do with "adjectives" since they are really using two completely different types of word classes under the same one title of "adjective."

It is a lot easier, in my opinion, to classify all of these words in this "nominal" class since they almost always work exactly the same way, and only in that one certain case where they will be used ever-so-slightly differently. Grouping them with the adjectival class I mentioned earlier is confusing because they are used in completely different ways, and are structurally not related to each other... Japanese people do not classify them all in this "adjective" group like some people try to do in English, because they simply are not the same kinds of words.

But if you ever hear people talking about "na adjectives" that seem to be a part of this group, that is what they are talking about. Those words are still in this group :)

So what does this all mean?! It seems useless and complicated...

Don't worry! This isn't some list of rules you need to worry. It's just important to know that there are these three groups of words that are used to make predicates and sentences. You don't have to use the names I came up with here (I use the naming conventions that JSL uses because I'm just used to that). You can, for example, call them "u words," "i words," and "da words" if you want :)

Just know that these three groups will ALWAYS work in the same way. Anything in one group will always work the same as anything else in the same group when it comes to forming a sentence and making a predicate. Thinking of them in these three groups will really help your understanding of Japanese.

This will all make sense the more you study Japanese, and you'll start to see these three groups stand out and notice their patterns. Realizing that the three groups are there early is a great way to lay a solid foundation for yourself :)

That's all you need to know, that there are these three groups :) When you learn new words, you'll start to find it's easy to figure out if they're in one of these three groups, even though this all may seem intimidating and confusing right now. And if you're already into your studies, you might realize that everything is much more simple than you thought with just these three groups to worry about. :D Have fun and keep studying!

The right mindset...

Learning Japanese is hard at first. But I can tell you that the hardest part is the beginning! Once it "clicks" for you, you pretty much are just practicing and learning new things until you know enough to be fluent. The hardest part is getting that click.

What you need to do is think about Japanese in the right way.

One of the biggest things to realize is that Japanese is not English. I know, you're saying "Uh, yeah?" because that seems obvious. But there's more to it than just that.

When you are learning Japanese words, you need to learn them as Japanese words, not as translations of English words. Translation is its own unique skill that you gain once you are good in two different languages. You don't need to -- or rather you shouldn't translate when you are just starting to learn a language.

If your friend pointed to your pet cat and asked なにそれ？ (What is that?), you should not think "It's a cat, and cat in Japanese is 猫." and then answer 猫だ。 Rather, you should just see the 猫 and know you have a pet 猫 and never think about how you even have a pet cat. Because you only have a pet cat when you're speaking English.

It's never a good idea to study vocabulary through methods that link a Japanese word with an English word. Rather, you should learn vocabulary through usage and imagery. When you are a baby, you see a cookie and you hear someone say cookie. After a while, you start to learn that the object you are looking at can be talked about by making a series of sounds that looks like "cookie." You don't learn it a secret baby language and then have someone give you a dictionary to translate to cookie. And you don't look at it and think of it in baby language first and then translate it to cookie in your head. You just look at the cookie and know it's a cookie.

Japanese needs to be that natural, too. Learn words by thinking of them to yourself when you see them. When you see your cat, say 猫 to yourself. Do the same with your テレビ and that 諸説 next to your ベッド. Get in your 車 to go to your 仕事.

You may not be able to read those words just yet, but that's how you have to think of the words when you do learn them. They are not equivalents to English words you already know. They are their own words.

This is important because sometimes even the most simple words that seem like they should translate directly do not always work that way. I remember our teacher used to sit at a table in front of the classroom, but she called it in Japanese something that would translate to "desk" if you asked a dictionary. But to us, it was definitely a table, not a desk. To her, there was no way it was a table. When you're picking up new words in Japanese, be careful to pay attention to how they are being used. Learn them the same way you learned that cookie. You see something, learn a name for it, and then start applying that name to it. Later on your definition of what is or is not a cookie or a desk or a chair can change -- don't think that just because a dictionary says something or you learned it one way that it is necessarily that way.

The same goes with learning grammar and structure. Japanese grammar is so vastly different from English that you can't really think about it in those terms. Certainly there are action words which are like verbs, descriptive words which are like adjectives, and naming words which are like nouns. But there will be many times that these seem to overlap or trick you in Japanese. That's because Japanese do not class their words based on their English translations and how those words are used in English.

When you learn a new grammar or structure in Japanese, try to think of its function, learn how its used, then don't try to think of what you would call it in English until you are forced to.

Now, when you're learning, sometimes you'll need certain terminology to be able to learn things. That's why I think it's really helpful to make up your own or use ones that you don't use when you're talking about English. Instead of calling words like 出来る 飲む "verbs," try calling them "u-words" or "masu-words." LINK:JSL uses the term "verbals" because it's similar to the English word "verb" but it's NOT a verb. Because they really aren't verbs. And I'm not just saying that to encourage you to think of them that way -- they're really not. "Verb" is just the closest English word we have to describe them.

Your brain needs to learn to go between English mode and Japanese mode and separate them. There shouldn't be any translating in your head going on. When you're first learning new things, you'll have to think of them in English for a bit because English is the way you're being introduced to them for the most part, but keep practicing them until you don't have to think about English. Once a Japanese word or concept or structure comes to you without you having to think through it in English (even if it's a bit sluggish to come out in Japanese), then you've really learned that part.

It's hard to do at first, but once you have them separated in your head, Japanese will be a lot easier to retain and a bit less complicated. Just really learn all of the basics and get a foundation, and you'll soon realize that you can learn anything in Japanese.

It's a very structured and organized language. Once you get down the basics, it's actually quite easy! The hardest part is definitely overcoming the barrier of difference between the two languages, so it's vital that you try not to think of Japanese as translations of English, and try not to think of things with English meanings or descriptions. Practice what you know until it just makes sense to you naturally. You can do it :)