NihonGo
Unit 01Phase A · Foundations

・・・です

Your first sentence — “A is B.”

topic pointer

“As for …” — it points at what the sentence is about.

わたしは = as for me

ですis · am · are

Close the sentence with it. Negative? Swap in じゃありません.

ねこです = it’s a cat

question switch

Add か at the very end — instant question. No word-order change.

ねこですか = is it a cat?

わたしは ねこです。

“I am a cat.” — that easy.

Step 1

3つの かたち

The three shapes

Same sentence, three endings: です (is), じゃありません (is not), ですか (is …?). Tap any example to hear it.

One thing the kana chart can't tell you: when is doing this job — pointing at the topic — it is pronounced wa, not ha. わたしは = “watashi wa”. Anywhere else は is still ha (はい = “hai”). Tap the examples below and you'll hear it.

Aだれ・なに
+
+
Bなに
+
です

“A is B.” — state what something is.

Aだれ・なに
+
+
Bなに
+
じゃありません

“A is not B.” — the negative.

Aだれ・なに
+
+
Bなに
+
ですか

“Is A B?” — add か to ask a question.

Step 2

クイズ

Copula quiz

Read the English meaning, then pick the right ending.

Question 1 / 6 · 0 correct

fill the blankわたしは がくせいblankI am a student.
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