STRUCTURE
N＋は
HOW TO USE IT
- は comes after a noun: N は ～. As a particle, は is read "wa".
- は marks the topic, what the sentence is about. The part after は is the main information.
- は is also used to contrast two things: A は～が、B は～ (A is…, but B is…).
- When a question word (だれ, 何) is the subject, use が, not は.
WATCH OUT
×冷蔵庫に何はありますか。
○冷蔵庫に何がありますか。
何 is a question word acting as the subject, so it takes が. A question word does not come before は.
×コーヒーは飲みますが、紅茶も飲みません。
○コーヒーは飲みますが、紅茶は飲みません。
The two clauses are opposite (drink / don't drink), so use contrastive は. も means "also" and needs same-direction clauses.
×私わ学生です。
○私は学生です。
The topic particle is read "wa" but is always written は.
Examples
私は毎朝パンを食べます。
わたしはまいあさパンをたべます。
I eat bread every morning.
この本はとてもおもしろいです。
このほんはとてもおもしろいです。
This book is very interesting.
土曜日は働きますが、日曜日は休みです。
どようびははたらきますが、にちようびはやすみです。
I work on Saturdays, but Sundays are my day off.
Often confused with
How each pair differs, with the exam trap in context, is in the Toey lesson.
Practise ～は with drills and review
Free: all of N5, with drills, audio and spaced review.
Start free →