N5 · Unit 6
Lesson 22Use plain speech in close settings
Use plain forms of verbs, adjectives, and noun sentences and distinguish polite from close settings.
What you learn
Use plain forms of verbs, adjectives, and noun sentences and distinguish polite from close settings.
Learning points
- Plain forms across predicate types
- Plain questions and replies
- Politeness and relationships
Why this lesson comes now
This lesson connects what you can already say to a new way of expressing it. Hear the key sentences, understand the structure, then use it in a real situation.
Your next step
Listen to the key sentences, understand the pattern, finish the examples and vocabulary, then continue to the next lesson.
Open the interactive lessonCore pattern
動詞普通形 ・ い形容詞普通形 ・ な形容詞 / 名詞 + だ ・ 普通形 + の？Beginner explanation
Plain speech is common with family and close friends. Verbs use dictionary, ない-, or た-forms directly; i-adjectives omit です; present affirmative na-adjective and noun sentences often use だ. Use polite speech with people you do not know well.
Understand these sentences first
- 明日 映画を 見る。ashita eiga o miru
I will watch a film tomorrow.
- 今日は 行かない。kyō wa ikanai
I am not going today.
- この 店は 安い。kono mise wa yasui
This shop is inexpensive.
- あの 人は 学生だ。ano hito wa gakusei da
That person is a student.
Core vocabulary
- 行くいくgo
- 見るみるsee; watch
- 食べるたべるeat
- 来るくるcome
- するするdo
- 暇ひまfree
- 本当ほんとうtrue
- うんうんyeah
Grammar, one point at a time
Polite and plain styles can express the same fact but mark a different relationship and setting
丁寧体 ↔ 普通体です／ます forms polite style. Plain style uses plain verb forms and removes polite endings from adjective or noun predicates. It is not simply a shorter sentence: tense and polarity must remain unchanged. With strangers, customers, teachers, or an uncertain relationship, polite style is the safer default.
Examples
- 明日は 忙しいです。→ 明日は 忙しい。I am busy tomorrow.
- 昨日は 暇では ありませんでした。→ 昨日は 暇では なかった。I was not free yesterday.
A verb has four core plain forms for tense and polarity
Vる／Vない／Vた／VなかったUse the dictionary form for a present or future affirmative, the nai-form for a negative, the ta-form for a past affirmative, and replace ない with なかった for a past negative. あります becomes ある, but its negative is ない, not あらない.
Examples
- 毎晩 テレビを 見る。I watch television every evening.
- 今日は 見ない。I will not watch it today.
- 昨日 見た。I watched it yesterday.
- 昨日は 見なかった。I did not watch it yesterday.
Plain i-adjectives omit です and never add だ
Aい／Aくない／Aかった／AくなかったKeep final い in the present affirmative, use くない for the negative, かった for the past affirmative, and くなかった for the past negative. Forms such as 忙しいだ and おいしいだ are not valid.
Examples
- 今日は 忙しい。I am busy today.
- 今日は 忙しくない。I am not busy today.
- 昨日は 忙しかった。I was busy yesterday.
- 昨日は 忙しくなかった。I was not busy yesterday.
Plain na-adjective predicates use だ in the affirmative and the ではない pattern elsewhere
Aだ／Aではない／Aだった／AではなかったUse 静かだ for an affirmative statement. 静かではない is the negative, with 静かじゃない common in speech. The past is 静かだった and the past negative is 静かではなかった or 静かじゃなかった. A direct question such as 静か？ normally omits だ.
Examples
- この 部屋は 静かだ。This room is quiet.
- ここは 静かじゃない。It is not quiet here.
- 昨日は 静かだった。It was quiet yesterday.
- 昨日は 静かじゃなかった。It was not quiet yesterday.
Noun predicates use the same だ and ではない pattern as na-adjectives
Nだ／Nではない／Nだった／Nではなかった今日は曇りだ is a present affirmative, while 昨日は雨ではなかった is a past negative. Spoken じゃない and じゃなかった contract ではない and ではなかった. Direct questions about identity, dates, or weather commonly use 学生？ or 雨？ rather than adding だ mechanically.
Examples
- 今日は 曇りだ。It is cloudy today.
- 明日は 水曜日ではない。Tomorrow is not Wednesday.
- 昨日は 雨だった。It was rainy yesterday.
- 昨日は 雨じゃなかった。It was not rainy yesterday.
けど can mark contrast or provide background before a request or question
小句 + けど、小句When the two clauses contrast, けど means but. A speaker may also leave the second half unstated and let the listener infer the request. That is not automatically an incomplete sentence, but the context must be clear. ですが is a more formal alternative.
Examples
- 試験は 難しかったけど、全部 できた。The test was difficult, but I completed it.
- 来週 食事会を するけど、都合は どう？We are having a meal next week. Are you available?
- ちょっと 聞きたいんだけど…。There is something I would like to ask...
Expressions and situations
Casual plain speech, service politeness, and formal written style are not one switch
Plain speech is common in close relationships, but role and setting can change the choice. Colleagues who speak plainly in private may use polite style in a meeting or with a customer. News, academic writing, and regulations may use written だ／である style, which is not the same as casual conversation.
- 友達：明日 暇？Between friends: Are you free tomorrow?
- お客様：明日は ご都合が いいですか。To a customer: Would tomorrow suit you?
Plain questions often rely on intonation and a question mark; nouns and na-adjectives normally omit だ
Raise the intonation on verbs and i-adjectives, as in 行く？ and 難しかった？. Nouns and na-adjectives commonly use 学生？ and 元気？. Use の？ to ask for explanation or confirmation; nouns and na-adjectives take なの？.
- もう 映画を 見た？Have you seen the film?
- どうしたの？What happened?
- 明日 暇なの？Are you free tomorrow?
うん and ううん are close-register responses, not universal replacements for はい and いいえ
うん is affirmative and ううん negative. Pitch and length affect how they sound. Use はい and いいえ with customers, teachers, or people you do not know well. いや may also reject or hesitate, but can sound more direct.
- 行く？— うん、行く。Going? — Yeah, I am.
- もう 食べた？— ううん、まだ。Have you eaten? — No, not yet.
かな marks uncertain wondering; の？ asks for explanation or confirmation
間に合うかな means I wonder whether I will make it. どうしたの？ asks the other person to explain. Nouns and na-adjectives take なの before explanatory の; before かな, forms such as 学生かな and 静かかな are common, while なのかな adds an explanatory nuance.
- 電車は 間に合うかな。I wonder whether I will catch the train.
- どうして 帰るの？Why are you going home?
- 今日は 休みなの？Is today a day off?
Plain form + って can relay information in conversation
来月引っ越すって is a conversational counterpart of 来月引っ越すそうです or と言っていました. Present affirmative nouns and na-adjectives commonly retain だ, as in 転勤だって and 元気だって. Do not present hearsay as verified fact when the source is unclear.
- 来月 海外へ 転勤だって。I heard there is an overseas transfer next month.
- 新しい 店は 静かだって。I heard the new shop is quiet.
知っている → 知ってる is a spoken contraction; omitted particles must remain recoverable
The い in ている often disappears in casual speech, as in 待っている → 待ってる. An object particle may also disappear in 電話番号、知ってる？. Beginners should first learn to recognise these forms and retain the full form when formality or clarity matters.
- 今 何を している？→ 今 何してる？What are you doing?
- この 番号を 知っている？→ この 番号、知ってる？Do you know this number?
Sentence-final よ informs or emphasizes; わ varies by intonation, region, generation, and personal style
The textbook-style 派手じゃないわ reflects one traditional conversational image, but it does not mean all women use わ or that men never do. Beginners should recognise it first. Neutral よ and ね are safer for production, with intonation learned from real audio.
- この 店は 安いよ。This shop is inexpensive, you know.
- 今日は 寒いね。It is cold today, isn't it?
Telephone numbers are usually read digit by digit, with a pause or の between groups
Read each digit in groups to reduce errors. Zero can be ゼロ, and の may mark a group boundary. Clear readings such as よん, なな, and きゅう are common for 4, 7, and 9, but repeat back what the speaker actually says.
- 電話番号は 03の1234の5678です。The telephone number is 03-1234-5678.
- もう 一度 お願いします。Please say it once more.
A masu-stem + 方 can name a way of doing or using something
Common forms include 読み方, 書き方, 使い方, 話し方, 作り方, and やり方. 方 is read かた here. Not every verb produces an equally established word, so check a dictionary or real examples when unsure.
- この 漢字の 読み方を 教えてください。Please tell me how to read this kanji.
- アプリの 使い方が 分からない。I do not know how to use the app.
タメ口 is not automatic permission between people of the same age; it is a shared judgment about social distance
タメ口 commonly refers to casual speech without polite endings such as です and ます. Suitability depends on closeness, roles, setting, and both speakers' comfort; equal age is not automatic permission. Start politely and adjust after an explicit invitation such as 敬語じゃなくていいですよ or as the relationship naturally changes.
- 敬語じゃなくて いいですか。May I speak less formally?
- まだ 丁寧に 話した ほうが いい。It is better to keep speaking politely for now.
What you should be able to do
- Express one verb in polite and plain forms for present affirmative, present negative, past affirmative, and past negative.
- Complete the four forms of i-adjective, na-adjective, and noun predicates, checking that an i-adjective never takes だ.
- Convert a conversation between friends into polite style and explain what relationship or setting change requires the switch.
- Recognise うん／ううん, 〜ている／〜てる, and omitted particles, then restore the full forms.
- Use かな, の／なの, って, and けど for wondering, explanation, hearsay, and backgrounding.
- Complete an original telephone arrangement: confirm digits, repeat the plan, and choose polite or plain style according to the relationship.
Culture and real use
Plain style is not careless speech: judge relationship, role, and setting together
The Japan Foundation's Irodori plain-style exercises compare friends, acquaintances, seniors and juniors, and staff-customer relationships, showing that age alone does not decide style. Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs also notes that friends or colleagues who normally avoid honorific language may use polite expressions in a meeting or another relatively public setting, while unfamiliar speakers use politeness to maintain appropriate distance. Beginners should therefore reject shortcuts such as plain equals real Japanese, polite equals stiff, or same age automatically permits タメ口. Starting politely is usually safer, then adjusting once relationship, role, and setting are clear. Written だ／である is a formal style choice, not friend talk. Forms such as sentence-final わ also vary by intonation, region, generation, and personal style, so recognition should come before gender-based imitation.
- 敬語じゃなくて いいですか。May I speak less formally?
- 会議では 丁寧に 話します。I speak politely in meetings.
- この 言い方は 失礼じゃないかな。I wonder whether this wording is impolite.