Japanese は and が Particles in 2 Minutes | (WA) vs (GA)

WA vs GA. は vs が. The BANE of Japanese learners. The Japanese は and が particles are often mixed up, for starters because it's taught that BOTH は (HA) and が (GA) can be subject markers. But... that's not quite right. In this short video, I clear up a few misconceptions about the は (HA) particle and が (GA) particle.
This is a JLPT N5 Japanese Grammar point that appears in various Genki 1 lessons. Genki is a Japanese language learning textbook.
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#JapaneseGrammar
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[@ToKiniAndy]

Check out our full course at www.tokiniandy.com ! Sharing means caring. ❤

[@D4mnis]

Can recommend! Had not much time to learn the last few months but managed to still repeat what I've learned so far (not much, basically Genki 1 chapter 1 + Katakana). Got back into it stuying by myself and this course makes it way more interesting :D

[@user-xe6sm4jv8f]

this makes much more sense than just "topic" and "subject" markers....

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m so glad to hear that! Thank you. =)

[@rimenahi]

Where is hard part in saying topic and subject marker? は marks the topic: 湖は温かいでした。(As for lake, it was hot.) が marks the subject: 氷が薄い。(The ice is thin.)

[@Lunar_Alexus]

@@rimenahi Most of the time "は" translated as "X is..." despite it actually means "as for X...". The closest particle to "is" is "が". People struggle to diffirenciate them because of this.

[@durg8909]

@@rimenahi “The lake was hot” “The ice is thin” Why is “lake” a topic but “ice” a subject? “Topic” and “Subject” just aren’t intuitive words.

[@kotori_no_saezuri]

@@durg8909 the emphasis is placed on the CAPITAL LETTERS part. これは大きい犬です。this IS A BIG DOG. これが大きい犬です。THIS is the big dog. 湖は温かかった。the lake WAS HOT. 氷が薄い。THE ICE is thin.

[@DavidStrife7]

Been living in Japan for years. You finally explained it in a way I understand. It makes complete sense now. Thank you. A 2 minute video covering a simple concept, that textbooks just gloss over entirely. Brilliant!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m so happy to hear that it made sense! Thank you for watching David! =)

[@retrohipster1060]

Yeah, は and が really confused the crap out of me. I think a big part of that is that I honestly just don't have a great grasp of grammar in any language. Like when somebody says something is a noun or an adjective or even something like a past participle I do understand to the extent that maybe I could pass a test if somebody asked me what those things were, but I'm really really don't have any intuitive sense of what those are in a sentence. I have to think when somebody says that something is even something as simple as a noun for instance. The fact that so much language learning leans heavily into grammar terms just doesn't help me at all when I'm trying to learn. I feel the same way when somebody says that something is the subject marker or the object marker. That just seems so unsatisfying. 😅

[@DavidStrife7]

@@retrohipster1060 Well language wasn't 'invented', it was discovered through feeling and intuition. We don't teach a newborn baby like we teach a class of children. Communication and language is a very natural thing for us, so it makes sense to be good at it, yet not understand why or how. Think about it. You're a professional breather. You breath every day succesffully (I hope). Can you explain how you do it so well? Sure you can break it down into chemical reactions and scientific explanations, but how do you actually 'do' it. Can you explain how to contract you muscles in certain ways? Nope. You just learned it intuitively, and it's an abstract experience you can't really communicate. So don't think about what you're saying too much. I think it's completely normal to be fluent in your own language, yet not be able to explain it to others. I would dare say that's how most people experience their culture/language (average person).

[@sodafloat_chuuu]

A few weeks ago my Japanese mum replied with “it’s just how Japanese works” when I asked her so thank you for explaining it 😭

[@raeldor]

🤣 I felt that.

[@jonathanbarkins8480]

That's how I feel like a lot of time when someone ask me a question about my native language haha. We really don't know how or why things work.

[@wonderstruck.]

That’s how all languages are supposed to be, even kids learn this stuff without ever knowing the “rules.” At a certain point you won’t be trying to remember rules, and something that’s wrong will just “sound wrong” to you

[@pablopereyra7126]

@@wonderstruck. Right, but it's still useful to try and fit as much as you can into intuitive rules so the language is easier to learn. Not too many rules though, just enough to make it more than an arbitrary word salad.

[@martylund8411]

Americans can't tell you the rules of Adjective Order, but the will hear you say something like, "The Brown Quick Dog," and immediately know it should be, "Quick Brown Dog," because, "That's just how English is." Nobody except the nerdiest English majors are ever formally taught the hierarchy. Everyone else just unconsciously assimilated it as kids through exposure.

[@BigDomski]

Why can't everyone explain things like this, it would be so much easier to learn 😭 Thank you Andy 🙏

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank YOU for watching! =) I'm glad to hear that it made sense!

[@purpleplays69420]

Some people just like to overcomplicate things

[@Trainfan1055Janathan]

Finally, an explanation that makes sense! Fot years, I was like, "But what's the difference between a subject and a topic?!"

[@christianalmli9085]

I already know 30 seconds into this video that the comments are gonna be full of sentences like "You saved my life" and "I will give you my firstborn daughter!!!" PS: This video made me instantly subscribe, I want you to be the godfather of my firstborn child.

[@vacuumcarexpo]

「これは大きい犬です」 means "This is a big dog." 「これが大きい犬です」 means "This is the big dog."

[@XxItzpink1xX]

So would would you use が if (let’s say) you were talking to your friend about a dog beforehand and once you show it to them it’ll be like a not new topic?

[@vacuumcarexpo]

@@XxItzpink1xX Thanks for your reply. If you use 「これが大きい犬です」 without giving any precedent knowledge about the dog to others, it sounds unnatural. People who heard what you said might wonder if they had already known about the dog. In real life, it's better to use other expressions with some modifying words added such as 「これがその『大きい犬』です」（This is the big dog.）, 「これが例の『大きい犬』です」（This is the big dog that appeared in the topic.）, 「これが前に話した『大きい犬』です」（This is the big dog I told you before.） or something.

[@XxItzpink1xX]

@@vacuumcarexpo ohhh ok thank you so much! It makes a lot more sense now!

[@vacuumcarexpo]

@@XxItzpink1xX Thanks for your reply. There used to be a famous Japanese comedian Ryutaro KAMIOKA（上岡龍太郎）, who played roles as M.C.'s of so many TV programs. He always greeted in the beginning of the TV programs with a self-introducing phrase 「私『が』上岡龍太郎です」 that includes an improper usage of "が" with the intention of making himself look more protrusive and more self-assertive and creating a strong impression on the TV watchers.

[@sournois90]

​@@vacuumcarexpothat just proves how powerful of a language japanese really is!

[@-haruto1601]

I know many people have already said it, but *THIS* .... *THIS* might actually be the best explanation of the basic usage difference between は and が. I've watched a bunch of videos trying to get a solid grasp, but no explanation has ever got even close to being this simple yet comprehensive. Thank you so much for all your contents, you're a lifesaver and one of the best (if not *The best* ) teachers of Japanese online

[@kieranandrew2297]

I have been teaching languages for 11 years and learning Japanese for 4. You did a damn fine job explaining this.

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you so much Kieran! I'm so happy to hear that it made sense. =)

[@BrittanyHerz]

Mind. Is. Blown. How can it actually be that simple? Amazing explanation!

[@Permian777]

I've been studying 日本語 on and off for about 16 years. Numerous explanations I have seen that had only baffled and discouraged me and now a 2 minute 39 second video has explained this to me in the most clear and concise way. If only I had seen something like this before, I would have saved a lot of time and energy and grief. As they say in "Tanken Factory": good job! ありがとうございました。。。

[@zuhachan]

i just spent an hour reading a 45 page thesis looking document about wa and ga and you did the job in less than 3 minutes. thank you andy!! subbed!!

[@etherealtalion]

Best video on は vs が there is! Examples were on point!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you so much! I'm glad it made sense. =)

[@etherealtalion]

I forgot! バナナが好きですが、食べれません。アレルギーがありますから。

[@ToKiniAndy]

おーのー！じゃあ、🍎をどうぞ

[@ezequielgerstelbodoha9492]

I think that the problem focuses on comparing は and が as if they play the same role. In japanese you use the particles (mostly) to indicate which part of the sentence the previous idea is. In the sentence: 父親が台所でカレーライスを作った。 You have a subject marked with が, a place marked with で, and the object that receives the action marked with を. The sentence is perfectly functional. Now you can emphasize any of those parts: 父親は台所でカレーライスを作った。 台所では父親がカレーライスを作った。 カレーライスは父親が台所で作った。 Notice that the subject (the father in this case who makes the action) is by any means necessarily to be the emphasized topic. This is how the particle は almost always works, you choose (usually the subject, thus the confusion) any part of the sentence to be topic, if you choose to do so. That works with には, では, とは, and in the case of を you dropp it and end with just は. This idea comes from the book "日本人のための日本語文法入門" from the autor 原沢伊都夫. Better explained and with more built up, but I tried to summarize the things I found essential, using the examples provided in the book. The autor also mentions that the uses of は are not limited to these, but that's what you'll find 95% of the time and what causes most confusions.

[@pmstorm]

Thank you so much Andy! This really helps clear up something that had been confusing me for several months!

[@tacticaljunk1608]

I've seen a lot of videos on this subject and this is the only one that doesn't shrug while delivering the information. Thank you for finally giving this a clear way to understand what these do.

[@adriankurniawan9391]

this is by far the best explanation that I can easily understand... thanks Andy for explaining these particles this way

[@supHauu]

Really effective way of clarifying this, thanks

[@licas1402]

Andy, thank you for this video!! Until today, I couldn't understand when to use each one correctly. And you just explained with a quick video, straight to the point. Continue doing more videos like this, please!

[@midnightfm87]

This, sir, is quite possibly the most helpful, concise, and important Japanese grammar video on the entire internet.

[@malka1762]

those visuals with the hands are fire and make it so easier to understand, thank you!

[@derpz_]

You absolutely delivered with this video and in just 2 minutes!

[@joetaku915]

Been loving the shorter form videos lately! so easy to digest while being immensely helpful! Thank you!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m glad to hear that Joetaku! Thank you for watching! =)

[@armandovillamizar9052]

すごい！ It was soo fun and engaging! thank you for the video!

[@alexwaal1625]

Super clear! Thanks for this helpful explanation!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Hi Alexander, Thank YOU for watching! =)

[@tokiyamikagami08]

This definitely helped me understand better! And such a brief (yet helpful) video too. Thanks!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m glad to hear it! Thank you for watching Rachel!

[@letshuman8985]

This makes so much sense! Thanks!

[@user-ps1zw9ki5u]

This is by far the best explanation I ever came across on は/が topic. Great job, Andy. 👏👏👏

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you so much! I’m glad to hear it made sense. 🍌

[@giacomogalli2448]

BY FAR the most elegant and clear explanation

[@AdsReviews]

Thank you, feel like this is the clearest explanation I've hit so far. Straight to the point and super helpful.

[@chad8380]

This was so clear! Great examples. Thanks man.

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thanks Chad! I'm glad it made sense! =) 🍌

[@noir371]

Finally someone explains it in an understandable way! ありがとうございます🙏

[@yaxasuzu]

I like how the top recommended video from here is another channel's video with the same topic, but it's 40 minutes long. I appreciate your concision!

[@grindingspider]

This is probably the most clearly explained... ANYTHING, in fact, i've ever heard! This sort of content is EXACTLY the sort of which smooth-brained orgamisms need the most. Simple, straightforward, easy to understand and quick. Love it ❤

[@Mei-kp5wu]

こんなに明確かつ端的に英語で説明された「は」と「が」は初めてです！凄いっ！！

[@darcycdamato]

I seriously love the way you explain things. It makes it so much easier for my brain to understand. Thank you for this video!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you Darcy! I'm happy to hear that the explanation makes sense. =) Thanks for watching!

[@Ruffy160]

Wa and Ga came up in my last Japanese lesson. Our Japanese teacher tried to explain it to us for most of the lesson with lots of different examples but none of us understood where the difference was. Your not even three minute explanation is so much easier to understand. Thank you!!

[@wingyeelee9284]

Thanks for the intuitive explanation!

[@Ch.Janaiyo]

すごい、ちょっどこういう動画を探していたんですよ。ありがとうございました

[@TenebraeLux]

THANK YOU! Other explanations I've read make it so complicated, you make everything sound so easy and undestandable.

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m happy to hear that it made sense! =)

[@ychentt]

Dude, I have never come across such a concise yet precise explanation. Been to Japan for many times since childhood and you just answered my biggest question ever. Thank you so much!

[@bobtakular]

It finally makes sense. Thank you. Very succinct explanation.

[@lix.bbokiee]

I just LOVE how this man explained something to me that I had been trying to understand during the 3 months of learning Japanese. ありがとうございました

[@ramitahazra7173]

You made it so easy! Followed you man!

[@josephcoram4361]

I have studied/spoken Japanese for almost 30 years, and this is THE BEST and simplest explanation of は and が I have ever seen!! 大変 感謝しますよ！！！

[@VanAnh-dm7yr]

Thank you Andy for this clear explanation! It finally makes sense to me

[@ToKiniAndy]

That's awesome! I'm glad to hear that it makes sense now. 🍌

[@rainbowwren5542]

This has changed my life. Why has no one ever explained this to me? It all makes sense now…

[@gamingbud926]

I literally just started trying to wrap my head around this last week. Thank you!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I'm glad to hear that it was helpful! =) Thank you for watching!

[@scottvandenheuvel4179]

This video needs to be used in classes - I remember being confused after the lessons and yet you did a week's worth in less than three minutes. Fantastic and le subscribe

[@MrSlicedAndDice]

These grammar videos have been super useful! Thanks a ton for making them so simple and to the point 🙏🏽バナナが好きです🍌

[@gbsartworks4963]

this actually makes so much sense now! thank you!

[@Liam-cq8bg]

Thanks, nice video. Gonna be referencing this a lot in the future

[@Lyverfive]

wow that was super clear! Thank you

[@markschenker4423]

Love. Love. Love this explanation. I knew they were the “subject” and “topic” particles but you did a brilliant job showing that visually. Keep up the amazing work!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you Mark! I'm glad you enjoyed the presentation! 🍌

[@DarkmegamanZ]

Arigato gosaimasen. I just started learning Japanese by myself and i have a looooot of doubts. This one was a big one, it was easy to understand ❤

[@Victor_Cazal]

Didn't expect much from this video honestly because I have been explained this many times and I never fully understood. Now I did. Thanks for the great explanation!

[@hazelphoenix_]

Instantly subscribed. Your explanation is detailed Yet simple, short and easy to understand and grasp!

[@MB-gl2bl]

Bless you so hard. I’ve been stumbling with this in my practice, but it’s starting to click. Thank you!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I’m glad to hear it’s starting to make sense! Thanks for watching M B! =)

[@purpleicicles]

This cleared up so much for me - thank you!

[@1Basanty]

The simplest explanation for はand が so far, thanks ✌

[@TheCrashLandon]

extremely helpful ありがとうアンド先生！

[@silvanvanderhorst7366]

Wow this was really helpful. Thanks

[@MM-du7je]

literally the only good explanation I've seen so far

[@_anastasia_wagner]

That is truly brilliant! Thank you so much for the video, I finally get the difference!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I'm happy to hear that it helped! =)

[@lakerssupremacy]

this clears up は and が usage for me. thanks!

[@zombietacos9585]

Short and simple. Very helpful, thanks a lot.

[@ToKiniAndy]

Glad to hear it made sense ZombieTacos! Thank you for watching! 🍌

[@kennynakawaki]

ありがとうございます！ Thank you so much!

[@DaWorldGuardian001]

I'm glad to have learned this difference when I did. I watched Onomappu's video a while back, and this video clarifies and grounds it in my knowledge bank. Thank you!!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Glad I helped ground it a bit! Thanks for watching Da_World_Guardian! 🍌

[@aeronuy3133]

thank you so much your lessons are very very helpful ^_^ please continue making content like this!

[@lukec8371]

Super helpful thank you!

[@Sirinxmanga]

I just went through 5 videos and half a book. This video just made it all click together. ありがとうございます

[@ashkael2508]

Nicely compressed valuable information🍌

[@ambersophiastone9991]

Woaaaaah you explained it soooo well!!! :3 Thank you so much for this... 💜✨

[@antoniaalabama2234]

omfg youre an angel you saved my life you dont know how long ive been strugfling with this and its that easy. if you excuse me imma go cry. thanks again man.

[@bibiana4425]

Andy you help me so much with my japanese. Thank you.

[@user-gz4io9zy7c]

Thank you so much 😍 your channel helps me a lot in learning japanese. I'm still watching Genki 2 videos ,and there are awesome. The way to explain the grammar making them easy to understand💓 btw I'm not English native speaker , I learn English too, but I can understand you well . I appreciate your hard work 🙇

[@ToKiniAndy]

You're welcome アミラ！ I'm glad to hear that the videos are helping! Thank you for watching! =)

[@Keeby.]

Great video!

[@trevinasolyman9295]

Thank you so much I was so confused you are my savior

[@impylse]

ばななが and this video すきです! 😂 Finally understood the difference, after a week of confusion watching japanesepod101

[@WhatsBliss]

Thank you! This explains why you usually say something like "___は好きです” when saying you like something but usually "___が好きじゃない" when saying you don't like something. In the former case, you're emphasizing the thing you like whereas in the later you're usually emphasizing your dislike for whatever the topic is. I noticed that Japanese sentences often use が when speaking negatively in general. I couldn't figure out why, but now it makes sense. in English we often put emphasis on the NOT in a negative statement (I did NOT go to the store). This creates a similar emphasis with grammar!

[@waffleless]

This should be jammed into every copy of Genki I. Damn this helped a lot.

[@cecitramont]

Bestはvsが explanation ever!

[@Doreikuuuu]

watched a 30 min vid about this topic and was still confused but it only took 2 mins from you to make me understand, thank you so much!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I'm glad it helped!

[@blueguern]

I like the way you have taught this subject. For me using the same sentence but interchanging は and が in order to show how the sentence changes is great. Too many textbooks make this subject so confusing. Have you done a similar video with に and で this would be interesting and would help clear things up, for me at least.

[@ToKiniAndy]

Hi Blueguern, I’m glad to hear it makes sense! I have done a video for で that touches on に、and a video that compares に and へ while also comparing to で. =) I just uploaded them recently, I’ll grab the links for you in a moment.

[@manuqc4435]

As someone who's been learning for about 2 years, this is by far the most straightforward, concise and useful video I've seen on the topic. I will definitely recommend this to anyone who's confused!

[@Amanee__]

This just saved my life- so it’s like in English when your italicised a certain part of a sentence, は would be used before the italicised part of the sentence where as が after the italicised part of the sentence. That’s the simplest explanation ever thank u so much-

[@dominikseljan3043]

Really nicely presented, great job :D

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank you Dominik! 🍌

[@jonathanngricourt9344]

Finally! Now I understand. Thank you so much!

[@LittelPrincess92]

What a life saver! thank you!

[@rusty9959]

Amazing, so helpful

[@alexvanderstadt2901]

Thanks Andy, learned something new!

[@ToKiniAndy]

I'm glad to hear that Alex! Thank you for watching! =) 🍌

[@people287]

I really like the panel of business people questioning me about my preferences from the fruit tray LOL. That actually helped a lot

[@pumpkinpi_]

UGH this was so good. Thank you!!

[@ToKiniAndy]

Thank YOU for watching liss! 🍌

[@bolt_up]

Sir, I’d shake your hand if I could. I went from having no clue to an “aha moment!”

[@bruno13532]

Bro. I was looking up for an explanation ever since i noticed wa and ga (been studying for 2 weeks only) and finally found it. Video favorited in case i forget

[@randomlyaccepted5215]

This makes so much more sense oh my goodness, thank you!!

[@ToKiniAndy]

You’re very welcome RandomlyAccepted! Thank you for watching! 🍌

[@TOMA-dx1fy]

You made this way easier to understand

[@raeldor]

This is gold, thank you!

[@KouriiRaiko]

Finally a sensible explanation!