Particle Explanations – WA

Particles are the little words that join a sentence together and make it grammatically correct. Often there is no direct translation for a particle, which can be very frustrating for people trying to work out how to use it in a sentence. Particles are so confusing! That’s why you can’t just leap into a big sentence and try to understand all the particles at once. You need to take them one at a time. So here is the first in our weekly Particle Explanations:

WA – は

This particle is used to identify a new subject. It can loosely be translated: “as for…” or “as regards…”, but has many uses. You may have heard “watashi wa” and “anata wa”, indicating that the topic of conversation is “me” or “you”. Have you noticed, though, that Japanese people often leave out these words? When referring to oneself it is not always necessary to say “I” or “me”, especially if it is already understood that you are the subject. WA is mostly used to highlight a new topic. Let’s see some examples:

Hiroshi and Tatsuya have been discussing hobbies and interests. Hiroshi is very talkative and has been going on about himself for a long time. At one point, Hiroshi says:
“Tennisu ga suki desu.” (“I like tennis.”)
Tatsuya, eager to tell his new friend what his favourite sport is, replies:
“Watashi wa sakka ga suki desu.” (“I -wa- like soccer.”)

Hiroshi did not need to say “watashi wa” to indicate that he was referring to himself, since he had already been talking about himself. Tatsuya, however, wants to draw the topic to his own interests, and so he says: “Watashi wa sakka ga suki desu” = “As for me, I like soccer.” WA is used in this example to highlight a new subject – i.e. Tatsuya instead of Hiroshi.

e.g. “Kore wa ringo desu” = “[As for] this, it’s an apple”

e.g. “Ken wa nan-sai desu ka?” = “How old is Ken?”
“Ni-jyuu-ni desu.” = “[He is] twenty two”
“Aiko wa?” = “What about Aiko?”
“Ni-jyuu-go desu.” = “[She is] twenty five”

SUMMARY: The WA particle is used primarily to mark a new subject. It does not need to be used when the subject is already clear or remains the same.