Grammar Info
N5 Lesson 5: 3/12

から
Because, Since

Structure
Verb + から
[い]Adjective + から
[な]Adjective + から
Noun + + から
Details
Part of Speech Particle
Word Type Case Marking Particle
Register Standard
品詞 助詞
単語の種類 格助詞
使用域 一般
Information
から can have several different meanings in Japanese, depending on which part of the sentence it is in, and what comes before/after it. It is often translated as ‘because’, or ‘since’. In these cases, it just means ‘Because of (A), (B)’.
  • 昨日(きのう)、アイスクリーム沢山(たくさん)食(た)べから、お腹(なか)痛(いた)です
    Since I ate so much ice cream yesterday, my stomach hurts. (From that I ate so much ice cream)
  • 彼女(かのじょ)優(やさ)しから好(す)きです
    Because she is nice, I like her. (From that she is nice)
から may be used with almost any type of word, but when the nuance is ‘because’, it will require before it after a noun or な-Adjective.
  • 大(おお)き会社(かいしゃ)から、人(ひと)沢山(たくさん)い
    Because it is a big company, there are a lot of workers. (From that it is a big company)
  • スマホ便利(べんり)から、人気(にんき)がある
    Since smartphones are useful, they are popular. (From that they are useful)
Despite having several different nuances, it may be easier to think of から as meaning ‘from’ in all situations, as that is the base nuance.
From (A as a reason), (B) = Because/Since
From (A as a location), (B) = From
Fun Fact
から is a special type of particle in Japanese called a 格助詞(かくじょし). These are particles that describe the relationship that (A) and (B) exist in. We will learn more about these soon!
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私(わたし)犬(いぬ)好(す)きですから
Because I like dogs.
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私(わたし)毎日(まいにち)勉強(べんきょう)したから昨日(きのう)テスト簡単(かんたん) でした
Because I studied every day, yesterday’s test was easy.
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明日(あした)月曜日(げつようび)から仕事(しごと)行(い)く
Because tomorrow is Monday, I will go to work.
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Books
Genki I
Page 121
Genki I
Page 177
Genki I 2nd Edition
Page 153
Marugoto Elementary 1 (A2) Rikai
Page 43
Genki I 2nd Edition
Page 215
みんなの日本語 I
Page 62 [CH 9]
[DBJG] A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar
Page 179
Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
Page 106