The Verb Map

Japanese Grammar 2

Course 2 · Chapter 1 · The Verb Map

🗺️ The Verb Map — どうしのちず

In Japanese Grammar 1 you used the polite ます-form. Everything in this course (the te-form, the negative, the plain past, the potential, the volitional) starts from the dictionary form and depends on one question: which group does this verb belong to? This chapter gives you the map: three groups, how to recognise them, how to find the stem, and a preview of every form you will build.

The rule in one box Every Japanese verb belongs to one of three groups. Group 1 (u-verbs) change their last kana. Group 2 (ru-verbs) drop る. Group 3 has just two irregular verbs, する and くる. Dictionary forms always end in う-row kana (う, く, ぐ, す, つ, ぬ, ぶ, む, る).

1. The dictionary form

The dictionary form (じしょけい, 辞書形) is the form listed in a dictionary. It is also the plain, non-past form of the verb ("eat / will eat"), and it is the base for everything that follows. Every verb ends in one of nine kana, all from the う-row:

Ending	Example	Meaning
う	かう (買う) kau	to buy
く	かく (書く) kaku	to write
ぐ	およぐ (泳ぐ) oyogu	to swim
す	はなす (話す) hanasu	to speak
つ	まつ (待つ) matsu	to wait
ぬ	しぬ (死ぬ) shinu	to die
ぶ	あそぶ (遊ぶ) asobu	to play
む	のむ (飲む) nomu	to drink
る	のる (乗る), たべる (食べる) noru, taberu	to ride; to eat

Only one ending (る) is shared by two groups. All the other eight endings are always Group 1. ぬ is used by just one common verb, しぬ.

2. The three groups

Group	Also called	Rule	Examples
1	u-verbs, godan (五段) verbs, consonant-stem verbs	Ends in any う-row kana. The last kana changes.	かく, のむ, はなす, まつ, あそぶ, かう, のる
2	ru-verbs, ichidan (一段) verbs, vowel-stem verbs	Ends in る, and the kana before る is an い-row or え-row sound. Drop る.	たべる, みる, おきる, ねる, あける
3	irregular verbs	Exactly two: する and くる (and verbs made with する, such as べんきょうする).	する, くる, べんきょうする

How to tell Group 1 from Group 2

Does the verb end in something other than る? Then it is Group 1. (かく, のむ, はなす, かう)
Is it する or くる (or ends in 〜する)? Then it is Group 3.
Does it end in る? Look at the kana before る:
- an あ, う or お sound (あ・う・お rows) → Group 1: のる, わかる, あがる, とる.
- an い or え sound → probably Group 2: たべる, みる, おきる, ねる, あける, できる.

Watch out: the "false ru-verbs" A small set of verbs look like Group 2 but are Group 1. The most common are: かえる (帰る, return), はいる (入る, enter), はしる (走る, run), しる (知る, know), きる (切る, cut), いる (要る, need), へる (減る, decrease), にぎる (握る, grip), しゃべる (chat). They end in い/え + る, yet behave as u-verbs. Learn them as exceptions: a dictionary marks the group of every verb. Note that かえる also means "to change" (変える) and that one is Group 2: the group depends on the word, not the spelling. Also compare きる (着る, to wear), which is Group 2, with きる (切る, to cut), which is Group 1.

3. Stems

The stem is what remains when you remove the ending. Group 1 and Group 2 build stems differently:

Group	Dictionary form	ます-stem (before ます)	ない-stem (before ない)
1	かく kaku	かき (く → き) かきます	かか (く → か) かかない
1	のむ nomu	のみ (む → み) のみます	のま (む → ま) のまない
1	かう kau	かい (う → い) かいます	かわ (う → わ) かわない
2	たべる taberu	たべ (drop る) たべます	たべ (drop る) たべない
3	する suru	しします	ししない
3	くる kuru	ききます	ここない

For Group 1 the stem simply moves along the kana table: the last kana shifts from the う-row to the い-row (ます-stem) or the あ-row (ない-stem). The only wrinkle is う, which becomes わ, not あ, before ない (かわない).

Why the names "godan" and "ichidan"? Japanese school grammar calls Group 1 godan ("five-row"), because the last kana moves through five rows (あ・い・う・え・お), and Group 2 ichidan ("one-row"), because only one row is used after the stem. You will meet these names in dictionaries and textbooks.

4. The forms this course builds

A preview of everything coming. Each form is built in its own chapter; do not memorise it yet, just notice how the three groups behave.

Form	Group 1: かく	Group 2: たべる	Group 3: する / くる	Chapter
Dictionary	かく	たべる	する / くる	1
Te-form	かいて	たべて	して / きて	2-4
ない-form	かかない	たべない	しない / こない	5
Plain past	かいた	たべた	した / きた	6
Potential	かける	たべられる	できる / こられる	8
Volitional	かこう	たべよう	しよう / こよう	9

Group 3 and the other groups する and くる are irregular, but they follow patterns you will soon recognise. する verbs are very common: any noun plus する becomes a verb (べんきょうする "to study", りょうりする "to cook"), and they all inflect exactly like する. くる is the only verb with three different stem vowels (き, く, こ).

🗣️ In Use — つかいかた

The groups are not visible in polite speech, but they sit underneath it. Listen for the verbs.

① Asking about a verb

A: 「かえる」はグループ1ですか、グループ2ですか。 "Kaeru" wa gurūpu ichi desu ka, gurūpu ni desu ka. Is "kaeru" Group 1 or Group 2?

B: 「かえる」は「かえります」ですから、グループ1です。 "Kaeru" wa "kaerimasu" desu kara, gurūpu ichi desu. "Kaeru" makes "kaerimasu", so it is Group 1.

② At home

A: おかあさんはまいあさなにをのみますか。 Okāsan wa maiasa nani o nomimasu ka. What does your mother drink every morning?

B: コーヒーをのみます。ちちはおちゃをのみます。 Kōhī o nomimasu. Chichi wa ocha o nomimasu. She drinks coffee. My father drinks tea.

③ Checking the dictionary

A: 「べんきょうする」はふつうのどうしですか。 "Benkyō suru" wa futsū no dōshi desu ka. Is "benkyō suru" an ordinary verb?

B: いいえ、「する」のなかまですから、グループ3です。 Īe, "suru" no nakama desu kara, gurūpu san desu. No, it belongs with "suru", so it is Group 3.

📋 Quick Reference

Question	Answer
Verb doesn't end in る?	Group 1
Ends in あ・う・お + る?	Group 1
Ends in い・え + る?	Usually Group 2 (check the exceptions: かえる, はいる, はしる, しる, きる, いる, へる)
する, くる, or noun + する?	Group 3
Group 1 stems	Last kana moves: う-row → い-row (ます), あ-row (ない; う → わ)
Group 2 stems	Drop る

✍️ Practice — れんしゅう

Try each one, then click to check.

1. What group is のむ and why?

Show answer

Group 1: it does not end in る.

2. What group is みる (to see)?

Show answer

Group 2: い + る, and it is not one of the exceptions.

3. What group is のる (to ride)?

Show answer

Group 1: お + る (an お-row sound before る).

4. はいる (to enter) ends in い + る. Which group is it?

Show answer

Group 1: one of the "false ru-verbs". Its polite form is はいります.

5. Give the ます-stem of はなす.

Show answer

はなし (す → し), so はなします.

6. Give the ない-stem of かう.

Show answer

かわ (う → わ), so かわない.

7. Give the stem of おきる (to get up) for both ます and ない.

Show answer

おき for both: おきます, おきない.

8. Give the ます-stem and ない-stem of くる.

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き (きます) and こ (こない).

9. What group is りょうりする (to cook)?

Show answer

Group 3: noun + する.

10. The dictionary form of たべます. Which group, and how do you get back to the dictionary form?

Show answer

たべる, Group 2: remove ます and add る. For a Group 1 verb you move the stem's last kana from the い-row back to the う-row (かきます → かく).

Coming up in Chapter 2: The Te-Form. The rules for each group (かいて, よんで, たべて, して, きて), the one exception (いく → いって), and why the te-form is the building block for the next three chapters.

The Verb Map

🗺️ The Verb Map — どうしの ちず

1. The dictionary form

2. The three groups

How to tell Group 1 from Group 2

3. Stems

4. The forms this course builds

🗣️ In Use — つかいかた

① Asking about a verb

② At home

③ Checking the dictionary

📋 Quick Reference

✍️ Practice — れんしゅう

🗺️ The Verb Map — どうしのちず