N5 Topics
L4: A Tale of Two Adjectives
Learn about using adjectives before nouns in more detail
A Tale of Two Adjectives
In this Topic, we're going to look at how い-Adjectives and な-Adjectives are used to describe nouns directly. We've already come across this pattern when we first learned about Japanese adjectives and in example sentences since then. However, let's make sure we have the rules firmly in our head before moving on.
Grammar in this Topic
い-Adjective + Noun
Describing a noun
In Japanese, almost any type of word can be attached to the beginning of a noun to modify the meaning, or describe the qualities of that noun. However, depending on the type of word used, conjugation rules will differ slightly.
For い-Adjectives, they are simply attached to the front of the noun in their standard (dictionary) form.
Caution
When identifying what is an い-Adjective, and what is not, remember that an い-Adjective will always have the い outside of any kanji that are in the word. However, the reverse situation with な-Adjectives always having the い in the kanji is not true 100% of the time.
面白い - The い is outside of the kanji, so 'interesting' is almost definitely an い-Adjective.
綺麗 - The い is inside of the kanji, so 'clean' is definitely not an い-Adjective.
One example of an exception as mentioned above is 嫌い. Despite the い being outside of the kanji, 'hate' is actually a な-Adjective. Don't worry though, less than 1% of any adjective that has い on the outside of the kanji will actually be a な-Adjective!
な-Adjective + Noun
Describing a noun
In Japanese, almost any type of word can be attached to the beginning of a noun to modify the meaning, or describe the qualities of that noun. However, depending on the type of word used, conjugation rules will differ slightly.
For な-Adjectives, they will always need to be followed by な, when used before a noun. This means that adjective (A) is describing qualities/features of noun (B).
Caution
Many words can take either な or の when describing a noun. The difference in meaning is usually clear. Let's take a look at both nuances.
(A) な (B) means that - (A) is a quality/feature of (B)
(A) の (B) means that - (A) is the type/purpose of (B)
To avoid making this mistake when using な-Adjectives to describe a noun, it can be helpful to think about whether you are describing a 'quality', or the 'purpose' of something.
Details
Now that we're a lot more familiar with Japanese adjectives and their essential uses, you may be wondering why there are two different types of adjectives in Japanese. Let's find out!
The Old...
The reason there are two types of adjectives is historical. The difference is between 'native words' and 'borrowed words'.
い-Adjectives are almost all native Japanese words, many having existed in one form or another for over a thousand years. Because they are so old, they have their own special grammatical place in Japanese, and are distinct from other types of words. They don't need any help to express something. That is to say that they can exist on their own and stick directly to nouns.
...And The New
Compared to い-Adjectives, な-Adjectives are the newcomers. Most な-Adjectives come from words borrowed from other languages (ancient Chinese dialects and, these days, English). Because they are newer, these words were originally borrowed into Japanese as nouns or noun-like words.
Due to な-Adjectives being noun-like, they cannot stick directly to other nouns, and therefore, some sort of glue is needed. That's the role of な.
What Is な Anyway?
So far, so good. But what exactly is this な? Unlike the い in い-Adjectives, we know it isn't part of the word itself.
This な is actually a form of だ. The same だ that means something like 'is'.
Since だ can become な, it may feel like you should be able to take any noun and use it descriptively by attaching な. But, unfortunately, we can't. This is the main grammatical difference between な-Adjectives and nouns. Luckily, の can still be used with regular nouns instead!
Helping the Exchange Student
--:--
伊藤：「綺麗なマンションだね！玄関も広い。明るい部屋でいいね！」
ジョン：「ありがとうございます。」
伊藤：「ここの窓は大きいだろう？僕の部屋の窓は小さいんだ。僕の部屋は暗いよ。」
ジョン：「旭ヶ丘は良い街ですか？危険な道はありますか？危ない人はいますか？」
伊藤：「ここは良い街だよ。このマンションの近所に、八百屋があるよ。親切なおじさんがいるよ。」
ジョン：「じゃ、あそこで野菜と果物を買います！」
伊藤：「このマンションに留学生が二人いるよ！イタリアの留学生なんだ。」
ジョン：「二人は優しいですか？」
伊藤：「とても優しい留学生だよ。」
ジョン：「二人は絵を描きますか？」
伊藤：「うん！二人はイタリアで有名な人なんだ。可愛い赤ちゃんのイラストを描くよ。一緒にあの大きな公園で絵を描く？」
ジョン：「いいですね！」