Topic hub
Japanese Particles
The one- and two-syllable markers that do in Japanese what word order does in English.
- Core particles
- 12
- Most confusing pair
- は vs が (topic vs subject)
- Particles in one sentence
- 1-4 typically
What particles do
English uses word order to mark who does what to whom (subject verb object). Japanese uses particles. Every noun in a sentence has a particle attached that names its role: topic, subject, object, location, destination, and so on.
Because of this, Japanese word order is more flexible than English. You can rearrange phrases for emphasis without changing the core meaning, as long as each phrase keeps its particle.
The core twelve
The particles that cover roughly 95 percent of everyday Japanese usage are: は (topic), が (subject), を (object), に (destination, time, existence), で (activity location, means), へ (direction), と (and, with), から (from), まで (until), の (possession), も (also), や (non-exhaustive 'and').
You do not learn them by memorizing definitions. You learn them by reading enough example sentences that the pattern clicks.
Related reading
Common questions
Can I drop particles in casual Japanese?+
Natives sometimes do in spoken conversation. Beginners should not. Learn the full forms first.
What's the most common particle mistake?+
Mixing up は and が. Short rule: は marks the topic (already known), が marks the subject (new or emphasized).