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BASIC STRUCTURE OF PARTICLE の
の no
When particle の is added to a noun, it creates a relationship between those two nouns.
の is the particle used to indicate ownership or association.
We add the particle の to show the possession of something. It is like adding ‘s to the end of a word, or saying his/her/their.
PATTERN
Noun 1 + の + Noun 2
彼の帽子
His hat犬の毛
Dog’s furだれの本ですか
Who’s book is it?Sometimes, the second noun (the “possessed” noun) can be omitted if it has already been established within the context. In response to that last sentence, for example, someone could say:
| 彼のです | kare no desu | it is his |
It would be implied from the context that the speaker is talking about the book.
At other times, the “possessed” item might be stated in the sentence, but not directly attached to its “possessor”, like this:
| この車は私のです。 | kono kuruma wa watashi no desu. | This car is mine. |
USING の TO DESCRIBE A NOUN
The particle の does not always indicate possession.
In some instances, の can translate roughly to “of” or “from”, or can simply be describing the noun that comes next.
| KANJI | ROMAJI | ENGLISH |
|---|---|---|
| イタリアの車 | itaria no kuruma | An Italian car (a car from Italy) |
| 英語の勉強 | eigo no benkyou | The study of English |
| 金の時計 | kin no tokei | A golden watch |
| 科学の授業 | kagaku no jugyou | Science class |
And it can also be used to rename a noun.
| 友だちのエリンさん | tomodachi no erin san | My friend Erin |
This example isn’t stating possession or that something is of, from, or about something. It is giving a name to the previously stated noun. This is similar to the appositive in English.
USING の WITH OTHER PARTICLES
の can also be attached to certain other particles.
It has the same effect of describing the noun that comes after it.
| 社長との会話 | shachou to no kaiwa | A conversation with the manager |
The meaning of particle と is unchanged; it still means “with” here in this context.
By adding particle の, we are able to describe the noun that comes next. Without this particle の to bind them, it would translate as, “a manager and a conversation,” not, “a conversation with the manager.”
It can be used like this with particle へ and で as well.
| 北へのバス | kita he no basu | The bus going north |
| 学校での会議 | gakkou de no kaigi | The assembly at school |
へ is showing direction, and で is showing the place where and action occurs, and by adding の, the phrase turns into a noun modifier that describes the thing that comes next.
There is no limit to how many modifiers we can chain together:
| 私の母の友だちの姉の夫 | watashi no haha no tomodachi no ane no otto | My mother’s friend’s sister’s husband |
It is important though to remember that each の is acting to modify the next thing that comes after it.
Ultimately, it is the final noun in the chain that we are talking about.
In the above example, it is the husband. We are just describing which husband it is (my mother’s friend’s sister’s).
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MORE RESOURCES
Want to learn more? Check out these other free resources:
- Learn about the Mandarin possessive particle 的
- Learn about the Korean possessive particle 의
FAQs
What is の?
の is a possessive particle used in the Japanese language.
How to use の?
の is used to connect to nouns.
Noun + の + noun
What are the Japanese subject and object particles?
The Japanese subject particle is が, and object particle を.
You can learn more about each of them in our Japanese Grammar Bank.
Any sentence examples with の?
彼の帽子 | His hat
犬の毛 | Dog’s fur
だれの本ですか | Whose book is this?
Where can I have a look at ALL of the Japanese particles?
Check out our Introduction to Japanese Particles to get an overview of the 15 most important particles for beginners.
Where to study Japanese?
You can learn Japanese with LTL, both online and offline.
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