在Verbs and descriptions
There is, there are
Japanese has two verbs for “there is”. Which one you use depends on whether the thing is alive.
Start with a puzzle
Which sentence is about a living thing?
First
公園に木があります。Kouen ni ki ga arimasu.Second
公園に犬がいます。Kouen ni inu ga imasu.Their forms
ある and いる
ある has a special plain negative: ない, never あらない.
| ある (things) | いる (living) | |
|---|---|---|
| Polite | あります | います |
| Polite negative | ありません | いません |
| Plain negative | ない | いない |
| Plain past | あった | いた |
Two word orders
What are you asking about?
There's a book on the desk.
The place comes first, and the news is what's there.
The book is on the desk.
The book comes first, and the news is where it is.
More than location
They also say what you have
I have a car.
“Having” uses ある, and the thing takes が, not を.
I don't have time today.
I have two siblings.
For family, either verb can be used; いる is common.
There's a concert at the community center tonight.
Events take ある, and the place takes で instead of に.
Also useful
持っている for things you own
持っている is “to own” or “to hold”. Use it when a person or organization has an object: 車を持っています. ある simply says something exists for you, so it also works for abstract things, such as problems and time.
Your turn
あります or います?
There's a cat in the garden.
Find the mistake
Tap the part that's wrong.
。
Put it together
There's a cat under the table.
Say it yourself
Show me around
A visitor asks what's near your home. Tell them about one shop or place, and one animal or person.
Automatic feedback on your own answers is coming to Premium.