Japanese Verb Conjugation: The Complete Cheat Sheet
Master all Japanese verb forms — masu, te-form, negative, past, and more. Clear tables and rules for Group 1, Group 2, and irregular verbs.
Japanese verb conjugation is one of the most important parts of learning Japanese. Unlike English with its hundreds of irregular verbs, Japanese has only 2 irregular verbs. Once you learn the patterns, you can conjugate almost any verb correctly.
📚 The Three Verb Groups
Group 1: う-verbs
End in a う-column sound
- 飲む (nomu) — drink
- 書く (kaku) — write
- 話す (hanasu) — speak
- 待つ (matsu) — wait
- 買う (kau) — buy
Group 2: る-verbs
End in -eru or -iru
- 食べる (taberu) — eat
- 見る (miru) — see
- 起きる (okiru) — wake up
- 教える (oshieru) — teach
Group 3: Irregular
Only two verbs!
- する (suru) — do
- 来る (kuru) — come
That's it. Japanese has only 2 irregular verbs. English has hundreds.
✨ Masu Form (Polite Present)
This is the form you'll use most in daily conversation. It's polite and safe in any situation.
🔗 Te Form (て形)
The most versatile form. Used for requests (〜てください), progressive (〜ている), and connecting sentences.
❌ Negative Form (ない形)
⏪ Past Form = Te Form Pattern
The past form follows the exact same pattern as te-form — just replace て with た (and で with だ):
飲んで → 飲んだ | 書いて → 書いた | 食べて → 食べた
Verb Conjugation Practice Test
Try these before checking the answer key. The goal is to recognize the verb group first, then apply the pattern.
| Dictionary Form | Task | Answer |
|---|---|---|
| 飲む | masu form | 飲みます |
| 書く | te-form | 書いて |
| 食べる | negative form | 食べない |
| 話す | past form | 話した |
| する | te-form | して |
| 来る | negative form | こない |
How to check yourself
- Group 1 verbs change the final kana row before adding the ending.
- Group 2 verbs usually drop る and attach the ending directly.
- する and 来る must be memorized because they are irregular.
🎮 Practice These Patterns
The best way to internalize conjugation patterns is through repeated practice:
- Japanese grammar practice — Conjugate verbs in context
- Japanese sentence builder — Build sentences using conjugated verbs
- Japanese fill in the blank practice — Choose the right form inside real sentences
For particles that go with verbs, see our Japanese Particles guide. For sentence structure, read our Japanese Sentence Structure guide.
Practice This Topic
Turn the guide into active recall with a focused QuizLingua practice page.
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