Grammar Info

N5 Lesson 3: 2/13

In, At, To, For, On

Structure Legend

Structure

Noun +

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

About に

can be a very difficult particle to master in Japanese, as it has many different translations in English. These translations are usually 'in', 'at', 'to', 'for', or 'on'. Let's look at an example of each meaning.
  • (かれ)部屋(へや)ます
    He is in his room. (に as 'in')
  • (わたし)(いえ)ます
    I'm at home. (に as 'at')
  • 公園(こうえん)()
    To go to the park. (に as 'to')
  • (わたし)誕生日(たんじょうび)ケーキ()
    I will eat cake for my birthday. (に as 'for')
  • バス()
    To ride on the bus. (に as 'on')
While these examples may seem quite confusing at first, it will be easier to think of as always having one 'basic' meaning. That meaning is to be the 'end-point' of an action. This means that whatever action is being described, can only be considered complete/able to be completed once you're at/while you're at the location/time described in the sentence.
  • マンション()
    To live in an apartment.
  • 旅館(りょかん)()
    To stay at a hostel.
Verbs like ()む (to live/dwell) often confuse learners, as they use instead of . This is also due to the fact that ()む is a verb that can only be 'completed' at the destination. (You can only complete the act of living/dwelling in the place that you live, so to speak).

Examples

  • (かれ)あそこいます

    He is at that place over there.

  • ここ(ほん)()

    To place a book on this place (here).

  • この(つくえ)(うえ)(すわ)

    To sit on this desk.

  • (えき)()

    To go to the station.

  • 病院(びょういん)()

    To go to the hospital.

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に – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (8 in total)

  • X11

    X11

    About 5 months ago

    why is に used when “旅館に泊まる” Speding the night at a ryokan? but で is used “教室で寝る” when Sleeping in the class room?

  • FredKore

    FredKore

    About 5 months ago

    The verbs that use に just show that you exist at a location.
    The verbs that use で show that you are actively doing something at a location.

    So, with the example, you might be thinking that “stay” (泊まる) is an action, but it’s really just describing that you exist at that hotel, and then the actions you take at that location are check-in, eat, talk, sleep. The hotel is the stage/setting for the actions that you do.

    今夜、ホテルに泊まって、ホテルのレストランで食べて、ホテルの部屋のベッドで寝ます。
    This evening, I’ll stay at the hotel (I’ll be at the hotel), and eat at the hotel restaurant, and sleep in the hotel bed.

    Here’s a link that even has examples where both に or で could be used and the different nuances of each.
    に (Ni) vs で (De): How These Two Particles Define Location and Time Differently

  • carolcakka

    carolcakka

    About 4 months ago

    この漫画にはフリガナがついているから読よみやすいです.
    I also saw this example sentence, what nuance would it make if it’s just ‘この漫画はフリガナがついているから読よみやすいです’? without the ‘に’? Thank you in advance!

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