Aru vs Iru: Choose the Japanese Existence Verb for the Scene

For basic existence sentences, use the aru verb for things such as books and trees, and the iru verb for people and animals. The polite forms are あります (あります, arimasu, "there is; there are, for things in this pattern") and います (います, imasu, "there is; there are, for people or animals in this pattern").

Choose what you are saying exists. Do not choose only by whether it is moving at that moment.

Start with two basic scenes

The TUFS basic existence explanation gives these sentences:

• 木があります。 (きがあります, ki ga arimasu, "There is a tree.")
• 犬がいます。 (いぬがいます, inu ga imasu, "There is a dog.")

The tree is biologically alive, but the checked sentence uses the thing pattern. That is why “living versus nonliving” is a rough memory aid, rather than a complete account of Japanese grammar.

The dog takes the animal pattern. The existence statement does not require the dog to walk around. A dog resting in the scene is still a dog; the sentence is reporting its presence, not its movement.

In these examples, が (が, ga, "the particle marking what exists here") follows the noun. A particle is a short grammar marker that shows a relationship or role in a sentence.

Add a location

The separate TUFS location-and-existence explanation supplies a larger frame. First state the location, then what exists there:

• 公園に木があります。 (こうえんにきがあります, kōen ni ki ga arimasu, "There is a tree in the park.")
• 家に犬がいます。 (いえにいぬがいます, ie ni inu ga imasu, "There is a dog at home.")

Here, に (に, ni, "the marker of the existence location") follows the place. Adding the location does not turn the tree into an animal or change the dog into an object. Keep the same basic verb choice.

Read each complete sentence before breaking it apart. The location tells you where to look; the noun after it tells you what is present. The final verb completes that existence statement.

Do not use an absolute test

TUFS includes advanced extensions, such as some machines described as moving or operating and dolls viewed with empathy. Those notes show that context can matter beyond the basic categories.

You do not need to memorize every extension before using the two checked examples. You do need to avoid turning a beginner memory aid into a claim that no other use exists.

If a course or dictionary gives an unfamiliar example, preserve its full context. Ask why that speaker uses that verb there. Do not replace it solely because a one-line English rule seems to demand the other verb.

Check a scene in order

Imagine a picture containing a park, a tree and a dog. This is an illustrative practice scene, not an extra vocabulary list.

1. Choose one thing to report: the tree or the dog.
2. Match it with the checked basic existence sentence.
3. Add a location only after that choice is clear.
4. Read the full sentence and check that it describes the intended scene.

If the problem is a question of topic versus subject, the wa and ga guide covers that separate issue. Do not try to settle every particle choice while first learning the existence verbs.

Keep one checked pattern

The N5 vocabulary core provides beginner word context. This page explains a choice between verbs, rather than adding another word-count target.

Use the vocabulary-learning guide to keep the noun and sentence together. For your next step, browse Inku's public vocabulary library for one familiar object or animal, then pair it with a checked basic existence example.

Sources

• TUFS: basic existence verbs — Trees and books take arimasu; dogs and people take imasu in the checked basic sentences. Advanced notes describe context-dependent extensions, so biology is not an absolute rule. (checked 2026-10-17)
• TUFS: existence at a stated location — The location-ni, thing-or-person-ga, existence-verb pattern, including the park/tree and home/dog examples; distinguishes existence scenes from other uses. (checked 2026-10-17)

Prepared by our editorial team with AI assistance. Product details are checked against the sources below.

Back to all posts