French speakers can use familiar sentences to see how Japanese arranges the same ideas.
The idea
French usually puts the verb before its object: « Je lis un livre ». Japanese commonly places the object before the verb: 私は本を読みます. は marks the topic and を marks the object; で marks where an action happens. Time and place can move, but the polite verb normally ends the clause. A known subject can be omitted.
| Japanese | French |
|---|---|
| 私は 本を 読みます。 | Je lis un livre. |
| 家で パンを 食べます。 | Je mange du pain à la maison. |
Examples
- 私は本を読みます。I read a book.
- 友達は水を飲みます。My friend drinks water.
- 私は家でパンを食べます。I eat bread at home.
- 今日、私は新聞を買います。Today I buy a newspaper.
- 学校で日本語を勉強します。I study Japanese at school.
- 明日、駅に行きます。Tomorrow I go to the station.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Japanese device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
Do not carry French word order straight across: 本を follows the object, and 読みます comes at the end. は marks a topic, not always the grammatical subject.
Try it yourself
私は 本を ＿。 （読みます／水）
Show answer or example answer
読みます
読みます completes the clause: the verb follows 本を.
学校＿ 日本語を 勉強します。 （で／を）
Show answer or example answer
で
で marks 学校 as the place where studying happens.
友達は 水＿ 飲みます。 （を／に）
Show answer or example answer
を
を marks 水 as the object of 飲みます.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Japanese sentences where available. We keep your score.
私は 本を ＿。 （読みます／水）
学校＿ 日本語を 勉強します。 （で／を）
友達は 水＿ 飲みます。 （を／に）
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Keep your progress
Sign up for free to save your practice results in your account.
Sign up to saveI already have an accountUse it today
Find the verb and particle in each example, then complete the three sentences.