Contrastive は
Set one topic against another
You'll be able to use は contrastively to highlight a difference between people, things, situations, or parts of a sentence.
蓮はコーヒーは飲みますが、紅茶は飲みません。
ren wa koohii wa nomimasu ga, koucha wa nomimasen.
What do you think this sentence means?
Ren drinks coffee, but he does not drink black tea.
Set one alternative against another
Contrastive は singles out one item against another stated or implied possibility. It may suggest “as for this one, however” rather than simply introducing a topic.
今日は行けませんが、明日は行けます。
kyou wa ikemasen ga, ashita wa ikemasu.
I cannot go today, but I can go tomorrow.
Form and use Contrastive は
は replaces が or を in many contrastive phrases, but follows particles such as に and で: には, では. A second contrast need not be spoken if the context supplies it.
今日は行けませんが、明日は行けます。
kyou wa ikemasen ga, ashita wa ikemasu.
I cannot go today, but I can go tomorrow.
魚は好きですが、肉はあまり好きではありません。
sakana wa suki desu ga, niku wa amari suki dewa arimasen.
I like fish, but I do not like meat very much.
肉は食べますが、魚は食べません。
niku wa tabemasu ga, sakana wa tabemasen.
I eat meat, but I don't eat fish.
平日は忙しいですが、週末は時間があります。
heijitsu wa isogashii desu ga, shuumatsu wa jikan ga arimasu.
I'm busy on weekdays, but I have time on weekends.
ひらがなは読めますが、漢字はまだ読めません。
hiragana wa yomemasu ga, kanji wa mada yomemasen.
I can read hiragana, but I can't read kanji yet.
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