話す means “speak” or “talk”. Use it for a language, a conversation or something you tell another person.

The idea

話す is a godan verb: its polite non-past is 話します, its polite past is 話しました and its て-form is 話して. Mark a language or what is said with を, a conversation partner with と, and the person told something with に.

Patterns to compare
JapaneseForm
話はなすDictionary form
話はなしますPolite non-past
話はなしませんPolite negative
話はなしましたPolite past
話はなしてて-form
話はなさないPlain negative

Examples

  • 私わたしは日本語にほんごを話はなします。I speak Japanese.
  • 友ともだちと電話でんわで話はなします。I talk with a friend on the phone.
  • 先生せんせいに旅行りょこうのことを話はなします。I tell my teacher about the trip.
  • ゆっくり話はなしてください。Please speak slowly.
  • 昨日きのうは母ははと話はなしました。Yesterday I spoke with my mother.
  • 会議かいぎでは英語えいごを話はなしません。I do not speak English at meetings.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

話す and 放す have the same pronunciation but different meanings: 放す means to let go. Do not write 話す with the other kanji when you mean speaking.

Try it yourself

  1. 友ともだち＿話はなします。（と／を） Choose the particle in brackets.

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    と

    と marks the person you speak with; を would not mark the conversation partner in this sentence.

  2. ゆっくり＿ください。（話はなす） Complete the request with the て-form of the verb.

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    話して / はなして

    The す ending changes to して in the て-form: 話してください is a polite request to speak.

  3. 昨日きのう、先生せんせいと＿。（話はなす） Complete with the polite past of the verb.

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    話しました / はなしました

    話しました is the polite past of 話す; 昨日 places the conversation yesterday.

Use it today

Say what language you speak, whom you talk with and one thing you told someone yesterday. Check the particles and the past form.