N5Lesson 21 of 437 min
Adjectives: い and な
Two types, and only one of them conjugates.
Japanese adjectives come in two families. い-adjectives behave almost like verbs and change their own endings. な-adjectives behave like nouns and lean on です. You have to learn which family a word belongs to along with the word itself.
い-adjectives
These end in い and carry their own tense and negation. They do not need です to work, though you add it for politeness.
| Form | Example | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain | 高い | たかい | expensive |
| Negative | 高くない | たかくない | not expensive |
| Past | 高かった | たかかった | was expensive |
| Past negative | 高くなかった | たかくなかった | was not expensive |
な-adjectives
These take な when they sit directly before a noun. Otherwise they behave like nouns, so you change です rather than the adjective itself.
| Form | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Before a noun | 静かな部屋 | a quiet room |
| Plain | 静かです | is quiet |
| Negative | 静かじゃないです | is not quiet |
| Past | 静かでした | was quiet |
Useful adjectives to start with
大きいおおきい
ओːकीːbig (い)小さいちいさい
चीːसाइsmall (い)新しいあたらしい
अताराशीːnew (い)安いやすい
यासुइcheap (い)好きすき
सुकिliked (な)便利べんり
बेन्रिconvenient (な)元気げんき
गेन्किhealthy, well (な)