posted in Everyday Japanese on November 3, 2025 by username 0 Comments

This table presents 40 foundational Japanese sentence patterns that serve as the building blocks for everyday conversational fluency. Each pattern is a “core phrase” or sentence frame that learners can use to create countless different sentences by substituting words—such as nouns (subjects or objects), adjectives, and verbs—according to the context.

These core phrases cover essential grammatical constructions, including making statements, asking questions, expressing desires, giving commands or requests, talking about locations, describing abilities, and more. By mastering these patterns, learners gain the ability to form complex, grammatically correct sentences in natural Japanese word order.

Each row includes:

• The Japanese phrase with pronunciation audio shortcode for listening practice,
• The romaji transcription to help with pronunciation,
• A literal word-for-word translation to understand how the sentence is structured, and
• A natural English translation to capture the intended meaning.

How to Learn Using This Table

1. Familiarize Yourself With the Patterns:
   Spend time reading and listening to each core phrase to understand its structure and meaning.
2. Practice Substitution:
   Replace placeholders (e.g., “A”, “B”, “動詞” [verb]) with your own vocabulary words—such as the nouns, adjectives, and verbs you are learning. For example, plug in “猫 (neko, cat)” as “A” or “食べます (tabemasu, eat)” as the verb.
3. Repeat and Drill:
   Use flashcards or spaced repetition systems (SRS) to practice the phrase structures regularly. Repetition helps internalize both the sentence order and particles that are critical in Japanese.
4. Combine with Verb Conjugation Practice:
   Since many patterns rely on verbs, practice conjugating your verbs in the relevant forms (present, past, negative, polite, etc.) as you use them in these core phrases.
5. Create Your Own Sentences:
   Start forming sentences using these patterns about your daily life, surroundings, or interests. This will reinforce both vocabulary and grammar naturally.
6. Listen and Speak Aloud:
   Take advantage of the audio shortcode to hear native pronunciation, then try mimicking the intonation and rhythm out loud to build speaking confidence.

By drilling these 40 core sentence patterns with your vocabulary, you will build a strong grammatical foundation that unlocks the power to communicate efficiently and correctly in Japanese. This approach leverages pattern recognition and substitution—key techniques that enable you to create new, meaningful sentences from a relatively small set of structures.

Core Phrases: