Particle を (o)

を is used to indicate the noun that proceeds it is a direct object of the verb in the sentence. For example,

Japanese	私はお酒を飲みます。
Romanization	Watashi wa osake o nomimasu.
English	I drink sake. (or I will drink sake.)
Explanation	“Sake” is the direct object of the action of “drink”

Japanese	私はテレビを見ます。
Romanization	Watashi wa terebi o mimasu.
English	I watch TV. (or I will watch TV.)
Explanation	TV is the direct object of the action of “watch”

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Japanese is an SOV language, meaning the subject is followed by the object, and then the verb in that order. English, on the other hand, is an SVO language.

Japanese language (SOV)

私	は	すし	を	食べます
Watashi	wa	sushi	o	tabemasu
Subject: I	Particle: Topic marker	Object: sushi	Particle: Object marker	Verb: eat
S		O		V

vs. English language (SVO)

I	eat	sushi
subject	verb	object
S	V	O

In English, we use “preposition” which is a word used before a noun to show direction, time, location, spatial relationships, or to introduce an object. Some examples of prepositions are words like “in,” “at,” “on,” “of,” and “to.”　Source:

https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/grammar/prepositions

In Japanese, we call them “postpositions” which is a word used after a noun to show direction, time, or location. These postposition words are called “particles” or 助詞 (じょし) in Japanese.

For example,

I will go to Kyoto.  “to” precedes the location Kyoto, thus a preposition

京都に行きます。”に (to)” follows the location, thus a postposition

 

Japanese verb conjugation

Watch this video (also embedded below) to learn about Japanese verb types and how to conjugate Japanese verbs from their casual forms to polite form:

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You can also use the explanations below to learn how to conjugate Japanese verbs from their casual forms to polite forms.

There are three types of Japanese verbs: RU verbs, U verbs, and irregular verbs

RU verbs

RU verbs end in RU (る) and RU is preceded by “e” or “i” sound. 

To conjugate RU verbs into their polite form: drop る first, add ます after it.

Follow the three steps below to conjugate two RU verbs into their “masu” forms (aka polite forms):

たべる (taberu, to eat)
Step 1: identify 1. RU ending 2. “e” sound before RU	たべ be	る
Step 2: drop RU	たべ	る
Step 3: add MASU	たべ		ます

みる (miru, to watch)
Step 1: identify 1. RU ending 2. “e” sound before RU	み mi	る
Step 2: drop RU	み	る
Step 3: add MASU	み		ます

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U verbs

There are nine possible endings for U verbs. They are う (u), つ (tsu), る (ru), ぶ (bu), む(mu), ぬ (nu), す (su), く (ku), and ぐ (gu).

To conjugate a U verb into its polite form, one must change the “u” sound in the ending to “i” sound first and then add ますform after it.

よむ (yomu, to read)
Step 1: identify 1. Not a RU verb 2. Not an irregular verb	よ	む (mu)
Step 2: change “u” ending to “i”	よ	み (mi)
Step 3: add MASU	よ	み (mi)	ます

きく (kiku, to listen)
Step 1: identify 1. Not a RU verb 2. Not an irregular verb	き	く(ku)
Step 2: change “u” ending to “i”	き	き (ki)
Step 3: add MASU	き	き (ki)	ます

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Irregular verbs

There are two irregular verbs in Japanese. They are する (suru, to do) and くる(kuru, to come).

To conjugate them into their MASU form (aka polite form), follow the next four steps:

する (suru, to do)
Step 1: identify 1. Not a RU verb 2. Not a U verb	す	る
Step 2: drop RU	す	る
Step 3: change SU to SHI	し
Step 4: add MASU	し		ます

くる(kuru, to come)
Step 1: identify 1. Not a RU verb 2. Not a U verb	く	る
Step 2: drop RU	く	る
Step 3: change KU to KI	き
Step 4: add MASU	き		ます