JapaneseJLPT
JLPT N5 grammar · Chapter 9

Dictionary form

The plain, casual form of verbs

You’ll be able to recognize verbs in their plain form as they appear in dictionaries.

Illustration of the scene described by I clean my room on Sundays.
Read it first

日曜日にちようび、部屋へやを掃除そうじする。

nichiyoubi, heya o souji suru.

What do you think this sentence means?

I clean my room on Sundays.

Why it means that

Recognize the basic plain non-past verb form

The dictionary form is the form used as a dictionary entry. It is also the plain non-past form used in casual speech and before many grammar patterns.

Example

毎日まいにち、本ほんを読よむ。

mainichi, hon o yomu.

I read books every day.

How it is built

Use the verb’s plain non-past form

Dictionary-form verbs end in a う-row kana, including many verbs ending in る.

Use the verb’s dictionary form, also called the plain non-past form.

Examples

食たべます → 食たべる

tabemasu → taberu

eat (polite form) → eat (plain form)

書かきます → 書かく

kakimasu → kaku

write (polite form) → write (plain form)

します → する

shimasu → suru

do (polite form) → do (plain form)

Compare

～ます vs the dictionary form

The same action, two registers. ます is for polite speech; the dictionary form is for friends, casual writing, and building other grammar patterns.

  • Plain

    毎日まいにち、本ほんを読よむ。

    mainichi, hon o yomu.

    I read books every day.

    This is the form you find in a dictionary.

  • Polite

    毎日まいにち、本ほんを読よみます。

    mainichi, hon o yomimasu.

    I read books every day.

    Same meaning, addressed politely.