Category: Lesson

This lesson explains how (ra)reru verbs work across godan, ichidan, 来る, and する, with simple examples to help you understand passive, respectful, and potential meanings.

In this lesson, find out all you need to know about mora and the role they play in making adding forms.

In this short lesson, you’ll learn how to make respectful adding verbs with wago and kango words!

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to control the level of formality and friendliness using native Japanese words and Sino-Japanese words.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to identify wago (native Japanese words) and kango (Sino-Japanese words) with ease! Essential for building honorifics and controlling how formal your Japanese sounds.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use the respectful directional verb kudasaru to show social relationships, group identity, and who gets the benefit of an action.

Learn how helper verbs tag onto main verbs, which auxiliary verbs can be “respect-boosted,” and how to use the most common patterns.

Meet the six most common replacing forms, learn what they replace, and get up to speed on some of their quirks.

Join me as we break down how vertical distance (respectful and humble language), in-group/out-group boundaries, community norms, and first-meeting uncertainty all shape what sounds natural (or awkward) in Japanese.

Polite language and respectful language often show up together, but it’s super important to treat them as separate parts doing separate jobs.