Putting sou da/desu on the end of a word can represent either hearsay or similarity. Desu is the copula. Interesting I should say that... “sin” sounds like “sen” which marks the negative in Japanese in the -masu form. (ます masu / です desu) C) Exalted or Honorific (尊敬語 sonkeigo) - This is what you say to your boss or those higher up when speaking about them or to them. It can be used in casual conversation to insult someone, like “服のセンスがなさすぎる” (that person has no sense for clothes). To make a formal style adjective sentence, add desu. It is close to adding un- to an English adjective (easy = un-easy, not easy). so desu/ so dewa arimasen In the case of noun sentence, the word so is often used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer. “Desu” 「です」 is one of the first words that most Japanese language students encounter, yet it is also one of the most misunderstood. If you are not familiar with verbs yet, read "Japanese Verb Groups" first.Then, learn "The ~te form," which is a very useful form of the Japanese verb. Akakattarou desu. This ring looks expensive. While the -tagaru form is useful, it’s not as colloquial as using the -tai form with speculative language. Now that I have gone over these two usages of “そう”, I want to talk a little more about the “state” one. Usage. nai-form is used in present-negative sentences for Plain-form. It is only used for information you got from a third party. I understand what you mean, but let me elaborate on an alternative meaning. I would like to add something though. "It doesn't look at all like it's going to rain." 「雨が降り そう です。」 (Ame ga furi sou desu.) 1. mira. The negative subjunctive form The rentaikei + まい (mai) is the negative form of the subjunctive form. ⭐ Today we will examine a little of Japanese adjectives. ⭐ Today we will examine a little of Japanese adjectives. stevo Says: September 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am. 丁寧語 【てい・ねい・ご】 – polite language 2. It was probably red. : The Difference Between 好きです and 大好きです in Japanese :T here are different levels to how much enjoyment we get out of things—or even people! or "It looks like rain." The positive and negative, present and past forms of -masu verbs and desu, plus the -te form; The three kinds of adjectives: na, no, and conjugating; How to make adverbs from adjectives; The number system; How to use counters (e.g., ikko, ni-ko, san-ko, etc. Grammatically, things get a little hairy here because ない (nai) can actually be either an adjective (形容詞） or a helping/auxiliary verb (助動詞), and そう in this case is acting as a helping/auxiliary verb. It is often followed by a form of “de aru” (da/desu). Simply conjugate the “ru” from -tagaru into the negative form to make -tagaranai. 男 （ おとこ ） みたい: “like a man”. Similarly, depending on whether you want to describe “state” or “hearsay”, other types of words will conjugate differently. [i-adjetive minus い (i)] + sou = “Looks/Seems [i-adjective].” i-adjective: 眠い (nemui) minus い: 眠 (nemu-) 眠‐ (nemu–) ＋ ‐そう (-sou) ＝ 眠そう (nemusou) “looks/seems sleepy/tired” Let’s look at some example sentences: 1. Which of the two it means depends on seemingly subtle and arbitrary grammar rules. Your email address will not be published. However, if you are referring to a women, the nuance is negative. -i adj: drop -i --> -sou desu ex: oishii --> oishisou desu-na adj: -sou desu ex: genkisou desu exception: ii --> yosasou desu negative: -nai --> -nasasou desu Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. Here I’ll give a summary of the main points. The adjective ii has special forms.This is the only exception in the entire class of adjectives. For more information, see the article about masu, masen, masen deshita. If you do a Google search for “降らなさそう” (which is incorrect) you’ll see over 4000 hits, although a few of them are talking about the very fact it is incorrect. I would like to add something though. I was fortunate to find this page which covers this topic pretty well in Japanese. takakunai たかくない 高くない is not expensive ＋manshon まんしょん マンション condominium ＋ie いえ 家 house, home ＋heya へや 部屋 room ＋ikaga いかが how (polite) ＋ooi おおい 多い … [EMAIL CONTACT: selftaughtjapanese -at- gmail.com], Notable Japanese word: “Shikumi” （仕組み / しくみ) and some ways to translate it. Sou desu (2) そうです（2） Predicate phrase meaning: look(s), seem(s) The supposition expressed is based on the speaker’s observation. 1) adjective plain form + はず が／はない （ = ~ hazu ga / wa nai) ／ ありません ( = arimasen) → ありません ( = arimasen) is more polite. 書 け そう = ka ke sou = It seems like someone can write, It … While this can be used as a word on its own, I want to focus on how it can be used to describe the speaker’s judgement of something based on external information. Tanaka san wa shinsitsu na hito desu. It was probably red. いいえ – no (polite) The Japanese we have learned so far is all well and good if you’re 5-years old. is done by conjugating the verb that indicates the action and not by desu. For more about desu , please see Lesson 5 of my Japanese Verbs . The plain form can be used instead of masu form in casual situations. Negative form : He didn’t do it. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. For more about desu , please see Lesson 5 of my Japanese Verbs . なさそう = seems like something does not exist. おいしくなさそう (oishikunanasou) <= It doesn’t seem tasty. This is how the sect advertises itself in the Western world. Interesting I should say that... “sin” sounds like “sen” … Simply put, sou desu means you heard, directly or indirectly, that something is or will be, while you desu means you sensed something is or will be, as in: Ame ga furu sou desu. The above examples would become, A negative form is also formed by transforming the da which comes While these sound a little similar they are not really related. It is close to adding un- to an English adjective (easy = un-easy, not easy). When a verb is conjugated using the -tai form, it means, 'I want to .' Although honorifics are not essential to the grammar of Japanese, they are a fundamental part of its sociolinguistics, and their proper use is deemed essential to proficient and appropriate speech.. [adjective]ない don’t require any さ insertion. nihongo ha jouzu de wa arimasen. Here is how we would use this pattern with different types of words: However, after using this pattern for years (and hearing others use it), I recently heard a native speaker use the word: So I did some research and discovered that sometimes なさそう (nasasou) should be used, and sometimes なそう (nasou). By the way, this page talks about a story where more than half of a certain high school class got this grammar wrong when polled. とき (TOKI) 4. takaku nakatta was not expensive. あした、あめが ふらなさそう です。(ASHITA, AME GA FURANASASOU DESU) =It doesn’t appear to rain tomorrow. 1. To conjugate the -tai form, remove -masu from the -masu form of the verb and add -tai in its place. I'm not good at Japanese. You desu and sou desu are similar and sometimes easy to confuse. Japanese Sentence Plain form no desu - Intermediate Lessons: 3 This lesson will teach you how to make your Japanese sentence sounds more natural using the grammar Plain form のです (Plain form no desu).. After learning Japanese for some time, you will notice that native Japanese speak differently from what you have learned so far. But it’s a nice article! " It seems as though rain will fall any second." Notice: "Anata" is being used on rather rare occasions. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. When we learn compound sentences, we will see that each sub-sentence of the compound sentence can end in masu-form as well. above examples become, If you have questions, corrections, or comments, please contact To make the Past form, change –i to –katta.For the negative form, change nai to nakatta.. takakatta was expensive. 'De wa arimasen' is simply the negative form of the copula 'desu.' states something (noun) IS something dewa arimasen - negative form of desu ja nai - negative form of da Specifically, how we describe a negative state. Rentaikei + sou (そう) The rentaikei + そう (sou) is used to describe “hearsay”. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. Da is actually the plain form of desu, which could be used with kara or kedo (keredomo) instead of da to make it more polite. For example this might be Tthe observational form of the verb, guess you could call it the see-say verb form. これは猫じゃない！ This is not a cat! Some time ago I had heard or read somewhere that proper word to use was なさそう (nasasou). For example, "to write", "to eat", "to come", "to study". まい (mai) is placed after the main (or closing) verb, also when that closing verb is in the polite form, but cannot be combined with verbal adjectives. This form is emphatic. I heard it’s going to rain. (e.g.) Keep up the good work! Another more technical way to remember this is when ない is acting as an adjective, we use なさそう (the さ here serves to change the adjective ない into the noun なさ), but when it acts as a helping verb, we use なそう. – It was good. ano biru no naka desu. This is a well-formed sentence so we use おいしく, This is not a well-formed sentence (it isn’t grammatically correct), so we use 勉強し, There there is already a “wa” particle in this sentence before the ない, so we use そうじゃ. desu - to be Positive Negative; Present: Plain: da: dewa nai: Polite: desu: dewa arimasen: Past: Plain: datta: dewa nakatta: Polite: deshita: dewa arimasen deshita: Probable: あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. All adjectives in Japanese end in –i (Non Past), -katta (Past), and -ku. Also, for those who are interested in classical Japanese, it is good to know that once the grammar for the “hearsay” case was previously used to express “state” (this is described here, search for 「古くは、様態ないし推量の意を表すのにも用いられた」). Rule 2: for i-adjectives that are in negative form, use なさそう (nasou) おいしくなさそう (oishikunasasou) It doesn’t look tasty. Consequently,in the text,we will rather say "Bunoa san mo furansujin desu ne." Masculine look or behavior. Tanaka san wa teinei na hito desu.So, any of these adjectives you can use. kore wa neko janai! 男 （ おとこ ） っぽい: “man-ish”. Required fields are marked *. even mo nai. Asoko ni shiroi biru arimasu ne. In this article, I’d like to go over an aspect of Japanese grammar that even some native speakers might get wrong. この指輪は高そうです。 Kono yubiwa wa takasou desu. Sou desu ka. One example in English could be comma usage (although depending on who you ask, there is some subjectivity involved there). or use the discussion forum / Privacy policy, kono shigoto wa kantan ja (de wa) nasasō da. ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. Adjective Negative Form : There are two negative forms. In this lesson, you will learn how to conjugate Japanese verbs in the present tense, past tense, present negative, and past negative. (ます masu / です desu) C) Exalted or Honorific (尊敬語 sonkeigo) - This is what you say to your boss or those higher up when speaking about them or to them. Japanese verbs ending in the ~ u sound, which include iku, yomu, kaeru, shiru, tsuku, wakaru, kakaru, and more, are consonant-stem or group one verbs. Akakattarou desu. But, for perfectionists or those who really want to learn proper grammar, this is a good thing to know. や れ そう = ya re sou = It seems like possible to do something” 書き そう = kaki sou = about to write, looks like s.o. In this lesson, you will learn how to conjugate Japanese verbs in the present tense, past tense, present negative, and past negative. It means ''you'' in English, but in Japanese, when you are talking to somebody, you must use the person's first name instead of ''anata''. In this form the above examples become Ame ga furisō mo nai. For example, "don't write", "don't eat", "don't come", "don't study". Hey, yea so far what’s been said seems OK. I'm good at English. そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. The verbs in this group are also called consonant-stem verbs or Godan-doushi (Godan verbs). ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. When it is negative, it becomes either nasō or nasasō. Positive attribute if you are referring to a man. It means “get married” ★ Sometimes it might be difficult to tell the difference between the two types of 〜そうです (sou desu) because they sound similar. とき (TOKI) 4. Japanese adjectives are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns. A negative form is also formed by transforming the da which comes after sou into its negative ja nai, or de mo nai or even mo nai. For example, adding “そう” after the verb “する” would become “しそう” for “state” and “するそう” for the “hearsay” usage. Using the -Tai Form The -tai form is used when you want to express your wish or desire to do something. Negative Verbs. As for your next question, the negative form of いけそうです is いけなさそうです. sou desu そうです Yeah. (sou desu ne)is used when agreeing with a statement. そうです (sou desu) in 耳の"そう" (mimi no "sou") is used to convey the message that you obtained from another information source, either you have heard from someone or you have read it somewhere. Similarly, how do you use desu ne? We'll take a look at how this type of go-dan verb works, using たつ (stand) and まつ (wait) as examples.. Bear in mind that all other verbs that end in つ in the plain (dictionary) form … The word janai じゃない is basically the negative form desu and da. Wow ! Japanese adjectives are words that assign a quality or characteristic to nouns. Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. It works not only for 'na- adjectives,' but for nouns and any kind of phrase which could have 'desu' attached to it. A However, even some people with high positions may choose to use the humble form with those under him or her. (Okay, so I set that one up...)話せますhanasemasu - can speakbecomes...私は日本語が話せません。watashi wa nihongo ga hanasemasen. In Japanese, the ～たい（-tai）form is used to express desire. - Is it your dog? Fortunately, since even some Japanese natives seem to get this wrong, it’s not going to be a huge deal if a Japanese non-native speaker makes this mistake. 雨が降るそうです。 Ame ga furu sou desu. The word “だいじょうぶ” (daijoubu) would be “だいじょうぶそう” (state) or ”だいじょうぶだそう” (hearsay). Unfortunately, adults are ex… Hey, yea so far what’s been said seems OK. If you are not familiar with verbs yet, read "Japanese Verb Groups" first.Then, learn "The ~te form," which is a very useful form … tsuki wa kirei dewa nai ... *kirei desu sou da If the watch is expensive, I won’t buy it. It isn’t a sin to be negative. However, in the predicative, dewanai ではない, or the contraction janai じゃない, is normally used instead. In the case of noun sentence, the word so is often used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer. We call these four forms "Plain Form". In this form the そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. Yokatta desu. Plain form The basic forms of Japanese verb are root form, nai form, ta form and nakatta form. Grammar Notes 3-1-1 Adjective Sentences. Rule 2: for i-adjectives that are in negative form, use なさそう (nasou), Rule 3: for the negative form of verbs, use なそう (nasou), Rule 4: for verbs that have ない as part of them in their positive form, use なそう (nasou). Tanaka san wa omoshiroi hito desu. In French it is the negative particle, n'est-ce pas? = Sou nano desuka. The basic form of group one verbs end with "~ u". after sou into its negative ja nai, or de mo nai or Whereas for そうです (sou desu) in 目の"そう" (me no "sou"), it means "It looks like ~"or "It seems ~". When the look of a thing leads you to make a guess, you can state your guess using this Japanese expression. (Satou san wa kekkon suru sou desu.) そうです and そうだ (SOU DESU, SOU DA) 5. We can just “like” them, or we could even go so far as to “love” them. Ame ga furu you desu. 地下鉄が高いそうだ。 Chikatetsu ga takai sou da. 謙譲語 【けん・じょう・ご】 – humble language 4. The さ comes when ない is used as an auxiliary verb or if used alone (as the verb) B) Normal - This is the standard form of a verb/noun that you use every day. マギーの料理が美味しい はず がない。 = Maggie no ryouri ga oishii hazu ga nai. – It’s good. See this page for a detailed explanation of these in Japanese. Now let's do some negative ones. The verb stem + そう combination acts as a -na adjective, so you can also use it to modify nouns by adding ～な (-na) after ～そう. sou desu nee そうですねえ Let me see, I’m thinking. The reason that matters is because if you want to add something like the particle “よ” (yo), you generally say “〜そうだよ”, not “〜そうよ” (the latter actually is used in conversation, but has a distinct feminine nuance to it). There is no way that ~ Ex. ↓ (conversational) そうな ん ですか。 = Sou nan desu ka. But actually that confusing “list of rules” boils down to one simple secret. You make th… I had misread the rule about すぎる and thought [verb]なさすぎる was correct, but not [verb]なさそう.. making me a little confused. Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. Ii desu. To contrast, another usage of そう is when the speaker is describing they heard about something, and this can technically be called hearsay (伝聞). Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. I'm not a … Also, the word “そう” in both of these cases is technically “そうだ” (sou da) but with the “だ” part dropped. 4141. (It's going to rain [because the weatherman or someone said so].) So we need to make sure the various pieces get put together correctly. This is when you are using ない to express something doesn’t exist or is not present. とき (TOKI) 4. It can only be used for actions (verbs). Since the ba form is the more formal conditional form, we’re going to conjugate the verb into the polite form as well.. 時計は高ければ、買いません。 Tokei wa takakereba, kaimasen. That is, the word janai means "is not" or "am not" or "are not." In this usage: present tense, past tense, negative present, negative past tense, etc. Sore wa nan desu ka in English with contextual examples so desu/ so dewa arimasen 【Learning Japanese #8】 so desu/ so dewa arimasen. ... “wa” is always used when the sentence is negative. Notice that the conjugation here is different, in the “state” case we drop the final い from the adjective (おいしそう), and in the “hearsay” case we keep it (厳しいそう). Sou desu (そうです) Te mimasu (てみます) Hazu desu (はずです) Kata (かた) Nagara (ながら) Skype Lessons: Single Lesson – $29.50 / hour 5 Lessons – $139.50 Learning Apps & Games: The Hiragana Game Links and Resources: Links Page (WHAT??!?!?!?!?!?!?!) Sometimes, while the negative form of something is the -masen it can Also mean ‘want to go’. Learn how your comment data is processed. ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. What ... “wa” is always used when the sentence is negative. Also a typo in romaji in Rule 1. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. Sentences that end with the plain form are less formal and each form refers to affirmative, negative and tense. I’m genuinely impressed by the clarity of your explanations. Putting sou da/desu on the end of a word can represent either hearsay or similarity. ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. B) Normal - This is the standard form of a verb/noun that you use every day. はい – yes (polite) 5. 尊敬語 【そん・けい・ご】 – honorific language 3. This is for verbs like 汚い (kitanai), すくない (sukunai), あぶない (abunai) etc. But how to decide which? takai expensive takaku nai not expensive. In order to build this form you first remove the い – I at the end of the plain form and add くない – KUNAI to the stem of the i-adjective as described in the following examples: Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Now let's do some negative ones. 2. - Anata no inu desu ka. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. Your email address will not be published. • 彼がそれをやったのではありません。/ない 。 = Kare ga sore wo yatta nodewa arimasen./ nai ↓ (conversational) • 彼がそれをやった ん ではありません。/ない … – “I heard that Ms. Satou is getting married.” ★ 結婚する (kekkon suru) is a verb in the plain form. The negative usage appears overwhelmingly more frequently, but the straightforward one is still not impossible. ore wa kanemochi janai 俺は金持ちじゃない I'm not rich. Which of the two it means depends on seemingly subtle and arbitrary grammar rules. Both なさすぎる and なさそう are valid words, but they have different meanings: なさすぎる = this is hard to translate but means like “too much of not having something”. The ultra quick guide to Japanese verbs of existence: desu です, aru ある and iru いる desu, iru and aru can all be translated as "to be" in English, but they all have different meanings Rule 3: for the negative form of verbs, use なそう (nasou) 勉強しなそう (benkyou shinasou) He/she doesn’t seem like they would study. To form the negative, add ～そうもない (-sou mo nai) instead. Sou desu ka. yoku wakarimasu, yoku tabemasu, etc. stevo Says: September 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am. Japanese Sentence Plain form no desu - Intermediate Lessons: 3 This lesson will teach you how to make your Japanese sentence sounds more natural using the grammar Plain form のです (Plain form no desu).. After learning Japanese for some time, you will notice that native Japanese speak differently from what you have learned so far. Next: How does the causative passive form of the verb work? For example, I can say: Here, the speaker is actually seeing the chocolate and making a subjective judgment that it is tasty, and it can be said that the speaker is making a guess at the ‘state’ (様態) of the thing in question. hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. Far too many people are mistakenly led to believe that it just makes a sentence polite, and although that is effectively all it does in some cases, it is so much more than that. Yoku nai desu. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. Rule 1: for existence, use なさそう (nasasou). For example this might be used when contradicting what someone else said. Like It or Love It? Now that we know how to change i–adjectives into the ba form, let’s create a few sentences. Fortunately, there is one rule you can remember instead of remembering all of the above four. Ben Bullock ~てみる and ~てみます (~TE MIRU, ~TE MIMASU) 6. So well, you can practice like this, donno hito desu ka? Perhaps it would be a good idea to add parallels like such in the future. Negative Verbs: Polite Form; Verbs: Casual form in the Past; Negative verbs: Casual Form; Verbs: Te Form; Level: JLPT N4. Yoku is one of the most commonly used adverbs and was already introduced in Lesson 1 as in. When learning these expressions for the first time, it is difficult to understand what the differences are between them because they … 英語が上手です。日本語は上手ではありません。 eigo go jouzu desu. Soka, as you’ve spelt, may mean the Japanese Buddhist sect of Soka Gakkai. The masu-form must always come at the end of a complete sentence and never inside a modifying relative clause. Da is actually the plain form of desu, which could be used with kara or kedo (keredomo) instead of da to make it more polite. – It wasn’t good. Sometimes in languages there are grammatical rules which are tricky or obscure such that even native speakers have difficulty with them. まい (mai) is placed after the main (or closing) verb, also when that closing verb is in the polite form, but cannot be combined with verbal adjectives. Japanese slang word: yabai (やばい）- when things get dangerous, Japanese Particle combination では (de wa) and じゃ (ja), Japanese word nuances: 美味しい (oishii) vs. 美味い (umai)…, The Japanese volitional form (~しよう、〜しましょう): much…, Different ways to express “Again” in Japanese, Japanese phrase 〜として (~toshite) [including としても and としては], そろそろ (sorosoro) – an extremely useful Japanese phrase, Japanese Vocabulary list: computer science and…, Articles on learning Japanese, culture, and media reviews (manga, novels, etc.) 1. ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. The i-form, or masu form, is used. あまり (AMARI) + ~ない (NAI) 2. If you are speaking about yourself, you will use the humble form. Yoku nakatta desu. Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka’s second episode helps to shed light on some of the mechanics involved in the afterlife that Kumoko and her class have been wrapped up in. Nevertheless a very helpful article. First, some background information about a few usages of the word “そう” (sou). The negative subjunctive form The rentaikei + まい (mai) is the negative form of the subjunctive form. Negative VerbsIt isn’t a sin to be negative. There is a small mistake: Japanese i-adjectives also allow to express a negative meaning. so desu/ so dewa arimasen In the case of noun sentence, the word so is often used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer. And now can you tell me, Tanaka san wa donno hito dessu ka?, You can use any of these adjectives over here that we have done so far. In Japanese there are many different ways to express likeness or similarity depending on appearance, behavior, or outcome. ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. Tabeta past tense + desu Tabenai negative present tense + desu Tabenakatta negative past tense + desu i-adjective + sou desu na-adjective (minus na) + ta + sou desu 2. The use of honorifics is closely related to Japanese social structures and hierarchies. Japanese i-adjectives also allow to express a negative meaning. The negative form of the da だ copula is technically denai でない. The expression is the past polite negative form of verbs, and what it means is that if masu is "does," then masen deshita is "did not." hai, so desu is affirmative answer and iie, so dewa arrimasen is negative answer. used when contradicting what someone else said. 1. Japanese verbs are roughly divided into three groups according to their dictionary form (basic form). takai たかい 高い expensive. ぜんぜん (ZENZEN) + ~ない (NAI) 3. desu - after nouns and adjectives desu means is, am, are etc. He/she doesn’t seem like they would study. Tanaka san wa shizuka na hito desu. But as Kumoko begins her uphill battle to adapt to her new abilities, the human side was actually a little more bearable this time around by giving us a more thorough understanding of the anime’s lore. Neutral if you are speaking about a man. I hear that Japanese teachers are strict. It expresses how something looks to the speaker. is going to write, writable. – It’s not good. You can also say いけそうにないです. ★ For verbs, if you know the ます form (masu form) of the verb, all you have to do is take off ます (masu) to get the verb stem. sou desu ne.. it's a way of agreeing to something someone's said.. kind of like "it is, ... usually used a form of agreement. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), The correct way to describe a negative state using そう (sou): “なさそう” vs. “なそう” (nasasou vs. nasou). Reference Grammar of Japanese by Samuel E. Martin, the dictionary form of the verb, for example. At the Rule: If you can safely put the wa or ga particle before ない (nai), then use なさそう (nasasou), otherwise use なそう (nasou). Taberu present tense + desu Tabeta past tense … やり そう = yari sou = about to do something, tend to do something, doable. Desu isn't used in all tenses like most "normal" verbs but can be used as below. At the Negative usage appears overwhelmingly more frequently, but the straightforward one is still not impossible characteristic nouns... Complete sentence and never inside a modifying relative clause sou ) is used to describe “ hearsay,. Getting married. ” ★ 結婚する ( kekkon suru ) is used article, I won ’ t seem like would! Ga furi sou desu, please see Lesson 5 of my Japanese verbs are divided... Proper grammar, this is a verb in the text, we will rather say Bunoa. T do it “ だいじょうぶそう ” ( sou desu. could even go so as! Speakers might get wrong ） みたい: “ like a man ” two forms... “ sen ” which marks the negative in Japanese mo furansujin desu ne is!, I ’ m genuinely impressed by the clarity of your explanations when it is negative 服のセンスがなさすぎる (. Will examine a little of Japanese verb are root form, is normally used instead will! 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Nan desu ka NAI to nakatta.. takakatta was expensive, it ’ s not as colloquial as using -tai. Even go so far is all well and good if you ’ ve,. ( Non Past ), すくない ( sukunai ), すくない ( sukunai ), あぶない ( abunai etc! To enable JavaScript in your browser can remember instead of masu form, remove -masu from -masu... Past tense, negative present, negative present, negative Past tense, etc ga mo. And reload the page Japanese end in –i ( Non Past ), and reload the page なさそう ( )... Is not '' or `` are not. whether you want to go ’ your wish or desire to something. ★ 結婚する ( kekkon suru ) is a verb in the Western world Today. A women, the ～たい（-tai）form is used when the sentence is negative sentence can end masu-form! Hearsay ) a formal style adjective sentence, the ～たい（-tai）form is used Says: 19th. 男 （ おとこ ） っぽい: “ like ” them, or the contraction janai じゃない is. Allow to express your wish or desire to do something, doable express a negative.. Ta form and nakatta form change i–adjectives into the ba form, is used form refers to,... N'T used in all tenses like most `` Normal '' verbs but can be used as.... A Reference grammar of Japanese by Samuel E. Martin, the negative usage appears overwhelmingly more,! ( Godan verbs ) please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and -ku explanation of adjectives... Janai じゃない, is used to answer a question requiring an affirmative or negative answer on rather occasions. Mai ) is a good thing to know VerbsIt isn ’ t seem like they study! Or `` are not really related not impossible used instead express something ’... A statement ( what??!?!?!?! this topic pretty well Japanese... Your explanations example this might be used in casual conversation to insult someone, like “ sen which! Noun sentence, add desu. san wa teinei na hito desu.So, any of adjectives! It 's going to rain. form of the compound sentence can end in –i ( Non )... The negative form of a verb/noun that you use every day the -tai form, remove -masu from -masu. Verb are root form, it becomes either nasō or nasasō express something doesn ’ t it! For a detailed explanation of these in Japanese there are grammatical rules which are tricky or obscure such even... T buy it 2009 at 9:27 am else said the -tagaru form is useful, becomes! Janai 俺は金持ちじゃない I 'm not rich n't look at all like it 's to. Is a small mistake: おいしくなさそう ( oishikunanasou ) < = it doesn ’ t exist or not! Ga furi sou desu ne. form are less formal and each sou desu negative form refers to affirmative, Past... You got from a third party when it is the negative form to make the Past form change! To affirmative, negative present, negative Past tense, negative and tense to an adjective... Existence, use なさそう ( nasasou ) that assign a quality or characteristic to.... ( Non Past ), あぶない ( abunai ) etc 「雨が降り そう です。」 ( Ame ga furi sou desu ). 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