Dictionary Form

📖 What Is the Dictionary Form?

The dictionary form (also called the plain form) is the base version of a Japanese verb — the exact form you’d find in a dictionary.

Example:

• 食たべる – to eat, 行いく– to go, 飲のむ – to drink

You need this form to:

• Look up verbs in dictionaries
• Build more advanced grammar patterns
• Speak casually in everyday situations

🧱 Understanding the 3 Verb Groups

To use the dictionary form correctly (and conjugate it into other forms), you need to know which verb group it belongs to:

🥇 Group 1: う-Verbs (Godan Verbs)

These verbs end in a -u sound (like く, す, む, る, etc.)

Examples:

• 飲のむ (nomu) – to drink
• 話はなす (hanasu) – to speak
• 書かく (kaku) – to write
• 取とる (toru) – to take
• 行いく (iku) – to go

🥈 Group 2: る-Verbs (Ichidan Verbs)

Ru-verbs are made up of a base which ends with either e or i plus the suffix ru. All ru-verbs, therefore, end with eru or iru (so if you see aru, iru or uru, they can be sure that they’re not ru-verb).

Examples:

• 食たべる (taberu) – to eat
• 見みる (miru) – to see
• 寝ねる (neru) – to sleep
• 起おきる (okiru) – to wake up
  

⚠️ Important note: Remember that not all verbs ending in える (eru) or いる (iru) are ru-verbs:

• 走はしる looks like it might be a ru-verb because it ends with いる (iru), but it’s actually a u-verb (Group 1)
• 知しる ends with いる (iru) but is also a u-verb (Group 1)
• 入はいる ends with いる (iru) but is a u-verb
• 要いる ends with いる (iru) but is a u-verb

This is one of the tricky parts of Japanese verb classification. While most verbs ending in える (eru) or いる (iru) are ru-verbs (Group 2), there are exceptions that you need to memorize or check in a dictionary.

🥉 Group 3: Irregular Verbs

Only two verbs break all the usual rules — but you’ll see them all the time:

する is also used to make compound verbs:

• 勉強べんきょうする (benkyō suru – to study)
• 運動うんどうする (undō suru – to exercise)
• 洗濯せんたくする (sentaku suru – to do laundry)

Note: These irregular conjugations might look complicated now, but you’ll become very familiar with them through practice. We’ll explore each form in dedicated lessons, don’t need to remember them now.

🗣️ Real-Life Usage of the Dictionary Form

The dictionary form is used in:

1. Casual Conversations

When speaking with friends, family, or in informal settings:

Example:

A: 今日きょう何する？ (Kyō nani suru? – What are you doing today?)
B: 映画えいが見みる！ (Eiga miru! – Gonna watch a movie!)

2. Internal Thoughts

When expressing thoughts in novels or manga:

Example:

• 「明日あしたは早はやく起おきる」と思おもった。(“Ashita wa hayaku okiru” to omotta. – “I’ll wake up early tomorrow,” I thought.)

3. Grammar Patterns

Used as a base for various grammar constructions:

Examples:

• ～たい for “want to”: 食たべたい (want to eat)
• ～ことがある for “have done”: 行いくことがある (iku koto ga aru – have gone)

Note: We’ll explore these grammar patterns in future lessons. For now, just notice how they all start with the dictionary form!

4. Clauses Within Polite Sentences

Even in polite speech, dictionary forms appear in the middle of sentences:

Example:

• 本ほんを読よむのが好すきです。( I like reading books.)

📝 Summary

• The dictionary form is the foundation of Japanese verbs, essential for both speaking and building grammar.
• Identifying the correct verb group (う-verbs, る-verbs, or irregulars) is crucial because each conjugates differently.
• In real-life Japanese, the dictionary form is used constantly in casual speech, embedded clauses, and as the building block for more complex grammar patterns.
• Mastering these forms will significantly improve your fluency and comprehension in Japanese.