Grammatical Points of the Text

the author of both the contents and the page itself is
Mitsuhiro Tagata (C) 1996

Return to GSIA 45-968 Fall 96: If your computer cannot display Japanese at all, go back to the homepage, and click the clickable icon to the right of the clickable line of text.

Lesson 14

Conjunctive Particle "te"

FORM: [Sentence1]+て, [Sentence2]。
MEANING: Because [Sentence1], [Sentence2]. / [Sentence1], and [Sentence2].
CONNECTION: 連用形+て
EXAMPLE: 道が混んでいて、なかなか進めません。(Because the road is crowded, we can't move along.)
EXPLANATION: The conjunctive particle て connects two sentences. The basic meaning of て is English "and", but it often means "because". In the example, the subject of なかなか進めません is implied. As usual, the subject does not have to be used in Sentence1 and/or Sentence2. The particle て requires 連用形(renyo-form). This means that the verb/adjective/adjective-verb just before it must be "renyo-form". In the example, the い is the renyo-form of the verb いる (上一段活用).

"no" to express "the person/thing/situation"

FORM: [Sentence-like]+の(+が/は/を)
MEANING: the person(s) who... / the thing(s) which... / the situation in which...
CONNECTION: 連体形+の
EXAMPLES: あそこで本を読んでいるのは山田さんです。(The person who is reading a book there is Mr. Yamada.); 川村さんが話しているのが聞こえます。(The situation in which Mr. Kawamura is talking is hearable.)
EXPLANATION: The particle の behaves as if it is a noun when preceded by a sentence-like modifier and followed by が, は or を. In the example, you can replace the の with 人. The preceding part あそこで本を読んでいる is equivalent to the English relative clause "who is reading a book there". As in the case of English, the whole phrase あそこで本を読んでいるの can be considered as a single noun. However, if this kind of phrase is used with を, it sounds rather rude and disrespectful.

"no" as English "of"

FORM: [nounA]+の+[nounB]
MEANING: [nounB] of [noun A] / A's B
EXAMPLES: 土俵の上 (the surface of the ring); 杉山さんの机 (the desk of Ms. Sugiyama; Ms. Sugiyama's desk)
EXPLANATION: The particle の is used to relate one noun to another. It often expresses a possession relationship as in 杉山さんの机, and a whole-part relationship as in 土俵の上. English speakers must be careful about the use of の because "A の B" is ususally "B of A".

Lesson 15

Conjunctive-like "tara"

FORM: [Sentence1]+たら, [Sentence2]。
MEANING:
(1) When/While [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
(2) If [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
CONNECTION: 連用形+たら
EXAMPLE:
(1a) 図書館に行ったら、杉山さんに会いました。(When I went to the library, I saw Ms. Sugiyama.)
(1b) 道を歩いていたら、杉山さんに会いました。(While I was walkiing on the street, I met Ms. Sugiyama.)
(2) 明日、杉山さんに会ったら、そう伝えておきます。(If I see Ms. Sugiyama tomorrow, I'll tell her so.)
EXPLANATION: たら is the 仮定形 (katei-form) of the past auxiliary た. Therefore, its basic meaning is "If something happened". However, it is often used for the supposition in the future. Note that たら itself does not have any subjunctive meaning. In Example 2, the probability of the speaker's seeing Ms. Sugiyama can be 0% to 100%. The simplest way to make the たら-form is first make a past form, and then put ら after it. For example, the negative verb 会わない can be made into 会わなかった and then 会わなかったら.

Conjunctive-like "nara"

FORM: [Sentence1]+なら, [Sentence2]。
MEANING: If [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
CONNECTION: 連体形+なら
EXAMPLE:
(a) 明日、杉山さんに会うなら、そう伝えて下さい。(If you see Ms. Sugiyama tomorrow, please tell her so.)
(b) 杉山さんが行くなら、私も行きます。(If Ms. Sugiyama go there, I'll go, too.)
(c) 雨なら、私は行きません。(If it rains, I won't go there.)
EXPLANATION: なら is the 仮定形 (katei-form) of the assertive auxiliary だ. However, it is relatively freely attached to any 連体形 (rentai-form) or 名詞 (noun). なら implies somebody's intention. In Example a, the speaker is talking about "your" intention or plan to see Ms. Sugiyama. In Example b, the speaker is talking about Ms. Sugiyama's intention or plan to go there. This is the main difference between なら and たら. たら, on the other hand, is a pure conditional. There is no implication to anybody's intention in たら. In the case of Example c, 雨 is not human, and therefore, it cannot have any intention. Therefore, in this case, なら and たら are interchangeable:
(c') 雨だったら、私は行きません。(If it rains, I won't go there.)
In most cases, 連体形 (rentai-form) is the same as 終止形 (plain-form). Therefore, the simplest way to make the なら-form is just to add なら after the plain-form.

Lesson 16

Conjunctive Particle "ba"

FORM: [Sentence1]+ば, [Sentence2]。
MEANING: If [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
CONNECTION: 仮定形+ば
EXAMPLE:
(a) 図書館に行けば、杉山さんに会えますよ。(If you go to the library, you can see Ms. Sugiyama.)
(b) 図書館に行かなければ、杉山さんに会えません。(If you don't go to the library, you can't see Ms. Sugiyama.)
(c) 雨なら（ば）、試合は中止です。(If it rains, the game will be cancelled.)
EXPLANATION: ば is used to make a conditional clause. This clause often introduces a concluding clause with "can". Therefore, a typical sentence with ば will be ～ば、～できます。which means "If you do this, you can do that." Note that ば is often omitted after なら, which is the 仮定形 (katei-form) of the assertive auxiliary だ. If ば is omitted after なら, the conditional clause will be the same as the conjunctive-like なら, which was mentioned in Lesson 15.

Conjunctive Particle "to"

FORM: [Sentence1]+と, [Sentence2]。
MEANING:
(1) When/While [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
(2) If [Sentence1], [Sentence2].
CONNECTION: 終止形+と
EXAMPLE:
(1a) 六時になると、門が締まります。(When it is 6 o'clock, the gate will be closed.)
(1b) 図書館で本を読んでいると、杉山さんに会った。(I was reading a book in the library when I saw Ms. Sugiyama.)
(2) このレバーを引くと、水が出ます。(If you pull this lever, water comes out.)
EXPLANATION: と is another way to make a conditional clause. と is used to express that something automatically occurs when something is done. と and ば is sometimes interchangeable, and sometimes not. Example 2 above can be re-written with ば as in: このレバーを引けば、水が出ます。without change in meaning. On the other hand, Example 1b can be re-written with たら as in: 図書館で本を読んでいたら、杉山さんに会った。The best way to master these particles たら, なら, ば, and と is to memorize many sentences with situations.

"...ba...hodo..."

FORM:
(1) …は、[Adj1]+ば+[Adj1]+ほど…。
(2) …は、[Adjverb1]+(ば)+[Adjverb1]+ほど…。
MEANING: The more ..., the more ...
CONNECTION: 仮定形+(ば)、連体形+ほど
EXAMPLE:
(1) 車は安ければ安いほどいいです。(The cheaper the car is, the better.)
(2) 図書館は静かなら、静かなほど勉強しやすいです。(The quieter the library is, the easier it is to study.)
EXPLANATION: This is a fixed phrase. The literal meaning will be "If something is..., with the better degree of being..., good." Note that ば can be omitted if adjectival verbs are used.

Lesson 17

A Short Comment on Plain-Style

The plain style is preferable for writing. Novels and newspapers are written in this style. On the other hand, the polite style is preferable for speaking. If you speak as if you are writing, you will sound very odd. The main difference between these styles is seen at the end of sentences. Typically, desu and masu are used in the polite style, while they are not used in the plain style.

Lesson 18

Volitional Auxiliary "u" and "you"

FORM: The auxiliaries う and よう conjugate as follows:

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
う		[empty]	[empty]	う	う	[empty]	[empty]
よう		[empty]	[empty]	よう	よう	[empty]	[empty]

MEANING: (A)"I'll..." or "We'll..."; (B) "Let's..."; (C) "I guess...will..."
CONNECTION:
(1) 未然形+う (for 四段, 形容詞, 形容動詞, and such 助動詞)
(2) 未然形+よう (for 上一段, 下一段, カ変, サ変, and such 助動詞)
EXAMPLE:
(1a) 図書館へ行こう。[with a yodan-verb] (Let's go to the library.)
(1b) まあ、よかろう。[with an adjective] (Well, I guess it will be okay.)
(1c) 図書館は静かだろう。[with an adjectival-verb] (I guess the library is quiet.)
(1d) 図書館へ行きましょう。[with an auxiliary] (Let's go to the library.)
(2a) テレビを見よう。[with a kamiichidan-verb] (Let's watch TV.)
(2b) チャンスをあげよう。[with a shimoichidan-verb] (I'll give you a chance.)
(2c) また、来ようと思う。[with a kahen-verb] (I think I'll come again.)
(2d) もっと勉強しよう。[with a sahen-verb] (Let's study more.)
(2e) もっと勉強させよう。[with an auxiliary] (Let's have him study more.)
EXPLANATION:

First of all, you have to know that yodan-verbs and the auxiliaries with the yodan-conjugation have two types of mizen-forms. One ends with the /a/ sound, and the other ends with the /o/ sound. When you use the auxiliaries う, you have to use the /o/ type of mizen-form.

Second, you have to remember う and よう are the same in meaning, but different in use. う is only used with yodan-verbs (whose endings are /o/), adjectives (whose endings are /karo/), adjectival-verbs (whose endings are /daro/), and the auxiliaries with the conjugation of one of these. よう is only used with kamiichidan-verbs (whose endings are /i/), shimoichidan-verbs (whose endings are /e/), the kahen-verb (which is /ko/), sahen-verbs (whose endings are /shi/), and the auxiliaries with the conjugation of one of these.

There are at least three meanings for う/よう. One is the speaker's intention to do something as in (2b) and (2c) above. Another is the speaker's invitation to do something together. This is almost the same as English "let's". The other is the speaker's guessing or reasoning as in (1b) and (1c) above. The decision of meaning is rather contextual than syntactical. For example, (2b) above can be interpreted as "let's give somebody a chance" according to the context.

Notice that if you use う/よう just with verbs, adjectives or adjectival-verbs, the sentence will be plain, not polite. If these auxiliaries are used in the middle of a sentence as in また、来ようと思います, it is polite enough with the final "masu". Otherwise, you may want to use polite forms of う/よう. Two useful phrases are ましょう and でしょう. The former is analyzed into ましょ+う, and the latter into でしょ+う, but probably it's better just to remember the whole phrases.

The Noun "tsumori"

FORM:
(1) (Subject+は+)VerbPhrase+つもり+です。
(2) その+つもり+です。
MEANING: I'm/You're/etc going to do something/so.
CONNECTION: (1) 連体形+つもり
EXAMPLE:
(1) 明日、映画を見るつもりです。I'm going to see a movie tomorrow.
(2) そのつもりです。I'm going to do so.
EXPLANATION:
The noun つもり is usually used for the first person singular. If it is used for the second person, it sounds a bit rude. For example, 明日、映画を見るつもりですか。(Are you going to see a movie tomorrow?) is less polite than 明日、映画を見ますか。The exact meaning of the noun つもり is an "intent" or "plan". Therefore, Example (1) may be translated into "I have an intent to see a movie tomorrow."

Lesson19

"dekiru", "kotoga dekiru", "-eru", "reru", and "rareru" to mean "can"

There are many ways to express English "to be able to" in Japanese. First, all the types of verbs can be followed by ことが出来る（ことができる）. For example, 読むことが出来る (for 四段動詞) "to be able to read", 借りることが出来る (for 上一段動詞) "to be able to borrow", 受けることが出来る(for 下一段動詞) "to be able to take", 来ることが出来る(for カ変動詞) "to be able to come", 逮捕することが出来る(for サ変動詞) "to be able to arrest". 四段動詞 have two other ways of making the "to be able to" form. 上一段動詞, 下一段動詞, and カ変動詞 have two other ways of making it. For サ変動詞, you can make the form by replacing する with 出来る. For more details, see below.

Potential Forms of Yodan-Verbs

FORM:
(1) [Verb]+ことが出来る
(2) [Verb+る]
(3) [Verb]+れる
MEANING:
(1) to be able to ~
(2) to be able to ~
(3) to be able to ~ / to be able to be -ed
CONNECTION:
(1) 連体形+ことが出来る
(2) 仮定形？+る (in fact, this is not a ketei-form, but the result is the same)
(3) 未然形+れる
EXAMPLE:
(1) 「書くことが出来る」-- このペンで手紙を書くことは出来ますか。Can you write a letter with this pen?
(2) 「書ける」-- このペンで手紙は書けますか。Can you write a letter with this pen?
(3) 「書かれる」-- ?このペンで手紙は書かれますか。Can a letter be written with this pen?
EXPLANATION:

When you use ことが出来る, the verb is the rentai-form, which is in fact the same as the shushi-form.

The verb shown in (2) is a new verb, which means that you can formulate a new verb by adding the katei-form of a verb to "ru". The resulting verb is always 下一段動詞. For example, the katei-form of 買う is 買え, and if you add る after that, you will get 買える. This verb means "to be able to buy" and the type is shimoichidan.

The potential form created by the third way often sounds awkward. The auxiliary れる has the meanings of passive and honorific in addition to potential, so the meaning will be sometimes confusing. My intuition says that (2) is a better and clear sentence than (3).

Although I said that (2) was formulated by adding the katei-form to "ru", there is no reason it is katei-form. And probably I should say that it is not any conjugated form. However, this way of formulation is always works, so I just said "katei-form".

Potential Forms of Kamiichidan-, Shimoichidan-, and Kahen-Verbs

FORM:
(1) [Verb]+ことが出来る
(2) [Verb]+られる
(3) [Verb]+れる
MEANING: to be able to ~
CONNECTION:
(1) 連体形+ことが出来る
(2) 未然形+られる
(3) 未然形+れる
EXAMPLE:
(1a) 見ることが出来る (2a) 見られる (3a) 見れる
(1b) 食べることが出来る (2b) 食べられる (3b) 食べれる
(1c) 明日、来ることが出来ますか。Can you come tomorrow?
(2c) 明日、来られますか。Can you come tomorrow?
(3c) 明日、来れますか。Can you come tomorrow?
EXPLANATION:
Unlike the word formulation of yodan-potential forms, these types of verbs do not formulate new verbs. In (2) and (3), the auxiliaries られる and れる are attached to the mizen-form of the verb in a normal way. (2) might be confusing because the auxiliary られる has the meanings of passive and honorific other than potential. On the other hand, the use of れる for 上一段, 下一段, and カ変 only means potentiality. The level of the politeness is higher in (2) than in (3).

Potential forms of Sahen-Verbs

FORM:
(1) [Noun]+する+ことが出来る
(2) [Noun]+出来る
(3) [Noun]+し+得る（しうる）
CONNECTION:
(1) 連体形+ことが出来る
(2) 名詞+出来る
(3) 未然形+得る
MEANING: to be able to ~
EXAMPLE:
(1) 「勉強することが出来る」-- こんな所で勉強することが出来ますか。Can you study in this place?
(2) 「勉強出来る」-- こんな所で勉強出来ますか。Can you study in this place?
(3) 「解決しうる」-- この問題は解決しえないだろう。This problem won't be able to be solved.
EXPLANATION:
The way of making potential forms by (3) is not so used in conversation. It is often used in formal wirting. The 得る（うる） above is a word from Old Japanese, and its conjugation is え, え, う, うる, うれ, えよ. In Modern Japanese, this verb conjugates as え, え, える, える, える, えよ. In formal writing, when following a verb to make a potential form, the word in Old Japanese is preferred.

Lesson 1 (Book III)

Wishing Auxiliary "tai"

FORMAT: In polite conversation, this auxiliary is used as follows:
(1) …は…（し）たいです。 (for the present tense)
(2) …は…（し）たかったです。(for the past tense)
CONJUGATION: The conjugation is of adjective type

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
たい		たかろ	たく/とう/たかっ	たい	たい	たけれ	[empty]

(Note: たく is the te-form as in 読みたくて; とう is followed by ございます, but rarely used; たかっ is the ta-form as in 読みたかった.)
CONNECTION: 動詞の連用形+たい (i.e., masu-form+たい)
MEANING: to want to...
EXAMPLE:
(1) 私は本が読みたいです。 (I want to read a book.)
(2) 私は本が読みたかったです。 (I wanted to read a book.)
EXPLANATION:
When the auxiliary たい is used, the object marker を sometimes becomes が as in the examples above. Compare them with (1) 私は本を読みます。 and (2) 私は本を読みました。

Appearance Suffix "garu"

FORMAT:

You can make a new verb by adding "garu" at the end of various forms.
(1) [Verb renyo-form]+たがる
(2) [Verb mizen-form]+（さ）せ+たがる
(3) [Verb mizen-form]+（ら）れ+たがる
(4) [Adj stem]+がる
(5) [AdjVerb stem]+がる

CONNECTION:

The suffix がる is attached to the stem of: (1-3) the auxiliary たい; (4) 形容詞 (adjectives); or (5) 形容動詞 (adjectival-verbs).

CONJUGATION:

The new verbs created by the above methods are 四段動詞 (i.e., Regular I). Therefore, their conjugation is:

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
…がる		がら/がろ	がり/がっ	がる	がる	がれ	がれ

MEANING:

(1) to show/express that ~ wants to do ~
(2) to show/express that ~ wants to have somebody do ~
(3) to show/express that ~ wants to be done
(4) to show/express that ~ is/are [Adj]
(5) to show/express that ~ is/are [AdjVerb]

EXAMPLES:

(1) 読みたがる to show that ~ wants to read ~

その子は絵本を読みたがっています。
The child shows that he wants to read a picture book. (i.e., Apparently, the child wants to read a picture book.)

(2) 読ませたがる to show that ~ wants to have somebody read ~

母親はその子に絵本を読ませたがっています。
The mother shows that she wants to have the child read a picture book. (i.e., Apparently, the mother wants to have the child read a picture book.)

(3) ほめられたがる to show that ~ wants to be praised

その子はほめられたがっています。
The child shows that he wants to be praised. (i.e., Apparently, the child wants to be praised.)

(4) うれしがる to show that ~ is happy

その子はうれしがっています。
The child shows that he is happy. (i.e., Apparently, the child is happy.)

(5) 退屈がる to show that ~ is bored

その子は退屈がっています。
The child shows that he is bored. (i.e., Apparently, the child is bored.)

EXPLANATION:

The verbs "...garu" should not be used to express the action or state of superior people.

Auxiliary "youda/youdesu"

FORMAT and MEANING:

(1) [Noun]+の+ようだ/ようです It seems that ... is [Noun]. (as a sentence)
(2) [Noun 1]+の+ような+[Noun 2]
(i) [Noun 2] with the appearance of [Noun1] ( as a noun phrase)
(ii) [Noun 2] such as [Noun 1] ( as a noun phrase)
(3) [Noun]+の+ように like [Noun] (as an adverbial)
(4) [Adj rentai]+ようだ/ようです It seems that ... is [Adj]. (where Adj is 形容詞, a so-called i-adjective)
(5) [AdjV rentai]+ようだ/ようです It seems that ... is [AdjV]. (where AdjV is 形容動詞, a so-called na-adjective)
(6) [Verb rentai]+ようだ/ようです It seems that ... [Verb].

EXAMPLES:

(1) この建物は図書館のようです。 It seems that this building is a library.
(2-i) そこに図書館のような建物があります。 There is a building with the appearance of a library there.
(2-ii) 私はあなたのような人が好きです。 I like people like you.
(3) 女の肌は氷のように冷たかった。 Her skin was cold like ice. (i.e., was as cold as ice.)
(4) この図書館は古いようです。 It seems that this library is old.
(5) この図書館は静かなようです。 Its seems that this library is quiet.
(6) 彼も日本へ帰るようです。 It seems that he also will go back to Japan.

CONJUGATION:

The conjugation of ようだ is basically the same as the assertion auxiliary だ; that is, the conjugation is of 形容動詞-type. The polite form ようです has the same conjugation as です.

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
ようだ		ようだろ	ようにようでようだっ	ようだ	ような	ようなら	[empty]

CONNECTION:

連体形+ようだ/ようです

EXPLANATION:

(i) The basic meaning of the auxiliary ようだ/ようです is "to have the appearance of ~".
(ii) Since the connection of the auxiliary is 連体接続, you have to use na-forms when you use 形容動詞(na-adjectives). Otherwize, you can use dictionary forms because 終止形(shuushi-form, i.e., plain-form) and 連体形(rentai-form) are the same.
(iii) The auxiliary ようだ/ようです could be analyzed as the noun 様（よう）plus the auxiliary だ/です. This is explained by the fact that the auxiliary ようだ/ようです is always preceded by 連体形 or 格助詞「の」. The noun 様（よう） could be said to have the meaning of "situation" or "appearance", but it seems that native speakers don't feel it is a noun when it is used with だ/です, に, or な. Therefore, it is usually written in hiragana. This type of noun is usually called 形式名詞（けいしきめいし）, i.e., "formal noun".

Auxiliary "souda/soudesu"

FORMAT:

(1) [Sentence shuushi-form]+そうだ。
(2) [Sentence shuushi-form]+そうです。

CONNECTION:

終止形＋そうだ/そうです

CONJUGATION: The conjugation of そうだ is of adjectival-verb type.

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
そうだ		[empty]	そうで	そうだ	[empty]	[empty]	[empty]

MEANING:

I hear that...; they say that...
(The difference between だ and です above is that だ is plain while です is polite.)

EXAMPLES:

(1) 彼も日本へ帰るそうです。 I hear that he will also go back to Japan.
(2) この図書館は古いそうです。 I hear that this library is old.
(3) この図書館は静かだそうです。 I hear that this library is quiet.
(4) この建物は図書館だそうです。 I hear that this building is a library.

EXPLANATION:

The auxiliary そうだ/そうです expresses that some known or unknown source says/said something. The source is often somebody else, so the translation is often "I hear that..." or "they say that..." Sometimes the source is a newspaper or something, so you can say 新聞によると、衆議院は解散するそうです。 (According to the newspaper, the House of Representatives will be dissolved.). By using そうだ/そうです, you can avoid any commitment to the contents. You are just conveying what you heard or read. On the other hand, the auxiliary ようだ/ようです implies some kind of your subjective judgment. Compare the example sentences (1) - (4) with the example sentences (1) and (4) - (6) in the Auxiliary "youda/youdesu" section above.

Lesson 2 (Book III)

Kaku-Particle "de" to mean "because of"

FORMAT: [Noun]+で
MEANING:because of~
EXAMPLES:
(1) 昨日は病気で学校を休みました。 I was absent from school because of sickness.
(2) 神戸の町は地震でめちゃくちゃになってしまった。 The city of Kobe was broken by the earthquake.
EXPLANATION:
(i) The 格助詞 (kaku-particle) で is used to express reasons or causes. If you can make a causative English sentence such as "X causes Y", then you can probably express it with the Japanese sentence "XでY". For example, the sentence "The sickness caused me to decide I would be absent from school." will lead to Example 1 above, and the sentence "The earthquake broke the city of Kobe." will lead to Example 2.
(ii) The kaku-particle で is sometimes difficult to distinguish from the 連用形 (renyou-form) of the auxiliary だ. See the following example:

今、夏休みで、誰も会社に来ていません。
If the で in the sentence is treated as the kaku-particle, the sentence will be a single sentence with the phrase 夏休みで. If the で is treated as the renyou-form of the auxiliary だ, the sentence will consist of two sub-sentences (i.e., two clauses) which are connected by the device of the renyou-form. In this example, however, I prefer the latter interpretation. In any case, when it is translated into English, the distinction will be less important:

Now, because of summer vacation, nobody is in the office

Now, because it's summer vacation, nobody is in the office.
(iii) There are other meanings in the kaku-partilce で such as "time", "place", "means or method", and "situation".

Auxiliary-like "hazu da" and "hazu dusu"

rentai
rentai
rentai

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
だ		だろ	でだっ	だ	な	なら	[empty]
です		でしょ	でし	です	[empty]	[empty]	[empty]

MEANING: to be logically inferred or supposed to~ EXAMPLES: (1) この建物は図書館のはずです。 This building should be a library. (2) この図書館は古いはずです。 This library should be old. (3) この図書館は静かなはずです。 This library should be quiet. (4) 彼も日本へ帰るはずです。 He should also be going back to Japan. EXPLANATION: (i) The noun はず combined with the auxiliary だ or です works as if it were an auxiliary. The meaning of this auxiliary-like is a logical inference. Therefore, the sentence with はず always implies that there is something which is the basis of the reasoning. For example, when somebody says the sentence in Example 1, you can assume he/she has a map of the city or has asked somebody else for the direction to the library. Unlike English auxiliries such as "must" and "should", the auxiliary-like はずだ/はずです has only one meaning of "logical inference". There is no explicit meaning of "obligation" or "euphemism". (ii) You can make a present inference sentence which shows inference about the past event. See the following sentences:

(1) この建物は図書館だったはずです。 This building must have been a library.
(2) この図書館は古かったはずです。 This library must have been old.
(3) この図書館は静かだったはずです。 This library must have been quiet.
(4) 彼も日本へ帰ったはずです。 He must also have gone back to Japan.

Notice that the の has been replaced by だった in Example 1.

Lesson 3 (Book III)

Use of "to", "ka", "douka", and "youni" for Subordinate Clauses/To-Infinitives

The words と, か, どうか, and ように are used to express the following English structures:
(1) と: S+V+that-clasue.
(2) か: S+V+(IO+)wh-clause.
(3) どうか: S+V+(IO+)if/whether-clause.
(4) ように: S+V+IO+to-infinitive.
The IO (indirect object) is usually expressed with the particle に, but often omitted.
For details about these structures, see below.

Quotation Kaku-Particle "to"

FORMAT:
[person]は、[sentence shuushi]+と+言う/伝える/思う
CONNECTION:
終止形+と
MEANING:
[person] says/tells/thinks that [sentence].
EXAMPLE:
(1) 私はこの建物は図書館だと思います。 I think this building is a library.
(2) 私はこの図書館は大きいと思います。 I think this library is big.
(3) 私はこの図書館は静かだと思います。 I think this library is quite.
(4) 彼も日本へ帰ると思います。 I think he will go back to Japan.
EXPLANATION:
Kaku-particles (格助詞) never conjugate. Therefore, と is always と. In the structure with と, the first subject is often omitted as in Example 4. The [sentence] part is a subordinate clause included in a larger sentence. The ending verb/adjective/adjectival-verb/auxiliary of this subordinate clause must be a shuushi-form and it must be a plain (i.e., non-polite) form. For example, the following sentences are not correct: *私はこの建物は図書館ですと思います, *私はこの図書館は静かなと思います, and *私はこの図書館は静かと思います. As shown in the last incorrect example, you cannot use only the stem of adjectival-verbs (i.e., na-adjectives).

Ending-Particle "ka" in a Subordinate Clause

FORMAT:
(1) [person]は、[sentence rentai]+か(+どう+か)+聞く/知る/わかる/教える
(2) [person]は、[wh-sentence rentai]+か+聞く/知る/わかる/教える
CONNECTION:
連体形+か；名詞+か；形容動詞語幹+か；形容動詞終止形+か
MEANING:
(1) [person] asks/knows/knows/tell (somebody) if/whether (or not) [sentence].
(2) [person] asks/knows/knows/tell (somebody) [wh-sentence].
EXAMPLES:
(1-a) 私はこの建物が図書館かどうか聞きました。
(1-b) 私はこの図書館が新しいか聞きました。
(1-c) 私はこの図書館が静かかどうか聞きました。
(1-d) 私は彼も日本へ帰るかどうか聞きました。
(2-a) 私はこの建物が何か聞きました。
(2-b) 私はこの図書館がどれくらい新しいか聞きました。
(2-c) 私はこの図書館がどれくらい静かか聞きました。
(2-d) 私は彼がどこへ行くか聞きました。
EXPLANATIN:
(i) The basic rule is that if you use wh-words such as "what", "when", and "how", you use only か, and that if you don't use them, you use かどうか.
(ii) Shuu-particles (終助詞) never conjugate. The subject of the outer clause is often omitted as in (1-d). The どうか can be omitted as in (1-b). Note that you have to drop な when you use adjectival-verbs in the subordinate clause with か as shown in (1-c) and (2-c). For example, the following sentences are incorrect:
*私はこの図書館が静かなかどうか聞きました。
*私はこの図書館がどれくらい静かなか聞きました。
(iii) However, if you change the な to だ, the resulting sentences are sometimes okay:
この図書館が静かだかわかんないよ。
この図書館がどれくらい静かだかわかりません。
This is applicable to Noun+か. That is, you can insert だ before か as in:
この建物、図書館だかわかんないよ。
この建物、何だかわかんないよ。
(iv) There is another complication on these structures. You can insert the kaku-particle の between the adjective and the か or between the verb and the か as in:
私はこの図書館が新しいのか（どうか）聞きました。
私はこの図書館がどれくらい新しいのか聞きました。
私は彼も日本へ帰るのか（どうか）聞きました。
私は彼がどこへ行くのか聞きました。
However, you have to use な for nouns and adjectival-verbs to insert の as in:
私はこの建物が図書館なのか（どうか）聞きました。
私はこの建物が何なのか聞きました。
私はこの図書館が静かなのか（どうか）聞きました。
私はこの図書館がどれくらい静かなのか聞きました。

Request Noun "you"

FORMAT:
[person1]は、([person2]に、)[verb-phrase rentai]+よう+に+言う/伝える
CONNECTION:
連体形+よう
MEANING:
[person1] tells [person2] to~.
EXAMPLES:
(1) 山田さんに会社へ戻るように言って下さい。 Please tell Mr. Yamada to return to the office.
(2) 山田さんに会社へ戻るように伝えて下さい。 Please tell Mr. Yamada to return to the office.
(3) 山田さんに会社へ戻るよう言って下さい。 Please tell Mr. Yamada to return to the office.
(4) 山田さんに会社へ戻るよう伝えて下さい。 Please tell Mr. Yamada to return to the office.
EXPLANATION:
This structure is usually used in the polite request て下さい-form without the subject as in the examples above. The word 伝える has almost the same meaning as 言う in the structure. The exact meaning of 伝える is "to convey". You can omit the に after よう as in Examples 3 and 4, in which cases the politeness to Mr. Yamada will become a bit higher but mostly the same.

Lesson 4 (Book III)

Auxiliary "souda/soudesu" to mean English "to seem/appear"

FORMAT:
(1) [Verb renyo-form]+そうだ/そうです
(2) [Adj stem]+そうだ/そうです
(3) [AdjV stem]+そうだ/そうです
(4) よさ+そうだ/そうです
(5) なさ+そうだ/そうです
(6) (ら)れ+そうだ/そうです
(7) (ら)せ+そうだ/そうです
(8) た+そうだ/そうです
CONNECTION:
動詞・助動詞の連用形＋そうだ/そうです; 形容詞・形容動詞の語幹+そうだ/そうです
CONJUGATION: 形容動詞型活用(adjectival-verb type conjugation)

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
そうだ		だろ	そうにそうでそうだっ	そうだ	そうな	そうなら	[empty]

MEANING:
It seems that...; Accoding to the appearance, there is a good chance that ... will happen.
EXAMPLES:
(1) 僕は試験に受かりそうです。 It seems that I will pass the exam.
(2) この図書館は古そうです。 It seems that this library is old.
(3) この図書館は静かそうです。 It seems that this library is quiet.
(4) 試験の結果は良さそうです。 It seems that the result of the exam is good.
(5a) 問題は無さそうです。 It seems that there is no problem.
(5b) 僕は試験に受からなさそうです。 It seems that I won't pass the exam.
(6) 課長に怒られそうです。 I'm afraid that the manager might get mad at me.
(7) 課長を怒らせそうです。 I'm afraid that I might have the manager get mad at me.
(8) あの人は何か言いたそうです。 It seems that that person wants to say something.
EXPLANATION:
(i) If you use 終止形(shuushi-form) with this auxiliary, the meaning will be changed. Compare the following with Example 1:

僕は試験に受かるそうです。I hear that I will pass the exam.
(ii) For adjectives and adjectival-verbs, drop い or な(or だ), respectively, to use their stems. Otherwise, the meaning of the auxiliary will be different. Compare the following with Examples 2 and 3:

この図書館は古いそうです。 I hear that this library is old.

この図書館は静かだそうです。 I hear that this library is quiet.
(iii) There are two irregular words. The adjective よい(良い) becomes よさ(良さ). The adjective/auxiliary ない(無い) becomes なさ(無さ). Example 5b above will be much more often expressed by [affirmative Verb renyo-form]+そうもないです/ありません:

僕は試験に受かりそうもないです。 It doesn't seem that I will pass the exam.
(iv) The auxiliary そうだ/です can be used with the passive auxiliary (ら)れる and with the causative auxiliary (さ)せる. Both auxiliaries have to be in the form of 連用形 (renyo-form) before そうだ/です. Therefore, Example 6 will be analyzed as 怒ら+れ+そうです, and Example 7 will be analyzed as 怒ら+せ+そうです.
(v) The auxiliary そうだ/です also can be used with the wishing auxiliary たい. In this case, the い has to be dropped just as in adjectives. The resulting form is the same as the past auxiliary た. Compare the following with Example 8:

あの人は何か言ったそうです。 I hear that that person said something.
The past auxiliary た is connected to the ta-form of verbs, and it does not have a renyo-form. The wishing auxiliary たい is connected to the masu-form of verbs. Therefore, the た in this sentence has to be the shuushi- form (or rentai-form) of the past auxiliary た, and the そうです means "I hear that..." If the masu-form and ta-form of a verb are the same, you sometimes cannot tell which meaning the sentence has:

あの人は何か食べたそうです。

It seems that he wants to eat something. / I hear that he ate something.
Only with intonation, you can decide the meaning of the sentence.
(vi) You cannot use a noun with this そうだ/です. Use the structure の+ようだ/です instead:

今日は雨のようです。 It seems that it will rain today.

Adjective/AdjV/Noun+"suru", and Adjecitve/AdjV/Noun+"naru"

FORMAT:
(1) [Adj renyou-form "ku"]+する
(2) [AdjV renyou-form "ni"]+する
(3) [Noun]+に+する
(4) [Adj renyou-form "ku"]+なる
(5) [AdjV renyou-form "ni"]+なる
(6) [Noun]+に+なる
CONNECTION:
形容詞・形容動詞の連用形+する/なる; 格助詞「に」+する/なる
CONJUGATION: 「する」 is サ変動詞(sahen-verb); 「なる」 is 四段動詞(yodan-verb)

word		未然形	連用形	終止形	連体形	仮定形	命令形
する		さ/せ/し	し	する	する	すれ	せよ/しろ
なる		なら/なろ	なり/なっ	なる	なる	なれ	なれ

EXAMPLES:
(1) 私は照明を明るくした。 I made the light bright(er).
(2) その小説は男を有名にした。 The novel made the man famous.
(3) 社長は山田さんを課長にした。 The president made Mr. Yamada into a manager.
(4) 照明が明るくなった。 The light became bright(er).
(5) その小説で男は有名になった。 Because of the novel, the man became famous.
(6) 山田さんは課長になった。 Mr. Yamada became a manager.
EXPLANATION:
The verb する is basically transitive, often accompanied by the object marker を, and implies an intensional action and its result. The verb なる is intransitive, and implies a passive action or natural process and its result. However, する also expresses a passive action or natuaral process and its result:

私はその光景に愕然とした。 I became astounded by the sight.

態度が堂々としていますね。 His attitude is stately.
If the words 愕然と, 堂々と or びっくり are used with なる, the sentence will sound a bit awkward.