Japanese Conversation · Level 1
86 words
Japanese word
は
Pronunciation
Romajiwa
Meaning
- particleas for ___
Example
これは本です。ko re wa hon de su
This is a book.
More examples
わたしは学生です。wa ta shi wa gaku sei de su
I am a student.
私は学生です。watashi wa gaku sei de su
I am a student.
Core concept
Marks a topic as the point of reference for the statement that follows.
Common phrases
それはso re wa
as for that
これはko re wa
as for this
私はwatashi wa
as for me
日本語はnihon go wa
as for Japanese
Similar words
もmo: Shows that the marked item is included in addition to another item.
ってtte: Marks the topic of a statement in casual spoken language.
Definition in Japanese
これから述べる内容の話題を示す語。ko re ka ra no be ru nai yō no wa dai o shime su go
Word origin
The hiragana は (ha) comes from the cursive form of 波 (ha, "wave"), and its use as a topic particle is pronounced wa.
Usage tips
- In conversation, は (wa) often selects one item from the context, while the rest of the sentence gives information about that item.
Other meanings
- speaking of ___particle