The conjugation of Japanese verbs is carried out by the change of endings. All Japanese verbs invariably end in -u.[1] The consonant which precedes the final u determines the conjugation. The vowel just before the final syllable is called the stem vowel of the verb. The inflective parts of verbs are roughly classified into the following:
- bu,
- gu,
- ku,
- mu,
- nu,
- ru,
- su,
- suru,
- tsu,
- u
Let us take the verb taberu (to eat), and see the different endings as conjugated:
| present tense | tabe-masu | eat |
| pres. negative | tabe-masen | do not eat |
| past tense | tabe-mashita | ate |
| pres. progressive | tabe-te imasu | are eating |
| imperative | tabe-nasai | eat |
| negative past | tabe-masen deshita | did not eat |
| interrogative pres. | tabe-masu ka | do you eat? |
As we see, the inflection is uniform for every verb except for the progressive tenses. To conjugate the verb in progressive forms, we must remember the following general rule. Although every verb has its own particular ending some generalization is possible as to what is to be expected. If the last syllable is:
| su; suru | then, progressive is | shite |
| mu; nu; bu | then, progressive is | nde |
| gu | then, progressive is | ide |
| u; ru; tsu | then, progressive is | te or tte |
| ku | then, progressive is | ite |
| (yomu) | Kore wo yonde imasu | I am reading this. |
| (hanasu) | Nani wo hanashite imasu ka | What are you talking (about)? |
| (taberu) | Nani wo tabete imasu ka | What are you eating? |
| (iku) | Doko e itte imasu ka | Where are you going? |
Other examples are not given here because we have not yet learned enough verbs for such a purpose. Now, let us take the
- ↑ This is the ending that appears in parenthesis. All the verbs in the dictionary section of this manual except those used in the lessons are only in this form.
