が – Marking the Subject ('Who/What') in Japanese [JLPT N5]

Quick Summary

• Meaning: The particle が marks the subject of a sentence and highlights new or focused information (answers “who?” or “what?”).
• How to Use: Attach が directly to the noun (or question word) that is the subject.

Example:

• 母がロボットです。
• Haha ga robotto desu.
• My mom is a robot.

Overview

The particle が is a subject marker. It tells us who or what is doing the action, who or what exists, or which thing the sentence is focusing on. It often introduces new information, or gives a clear answer to “who?” or “what?” questions. Compared to は (topic marker), which talks about the general topic, が puts a spotlight on the subject itself, especially when it’s the key, new, or surprising part of the message.

Use が in these common situations:

• Existence/location: with あります (arimasu, to exist for things) and います (imasu, to exist for people/animals), the thing that exists takes が.
• Likes/skills/wants: with adjectives like 好きです (suki desu, like; to like), きらいです (kirai desu, dislike), 上手です (jouzu desu, to be good at), 下手です (heta desu, to be bad at), ほしいです (hoshii desu, want), the liked/wanted/skillful thing takes が.
• Question words: だれ (dare, who), なに (nani, what), どれ (dore, which) usually take が when they are the subject.

Example:

• 月にチーズがあります。
• Tsuki ni chiizu ga arimasu.
• There is cheese on the moon.

Structure / Formation

Base Patterns

• N が V
• N が i-adj です
• N が na-adj です
• Place に N が いる / ある
• Person は N が 好きです / きらいです / 上手です / 下手です / ほしいです
• だれ / なに / どれ + が + V

How It Works

N が V puts the focus on the subject N as the doer or the key part of the sentence. Use it when introducing a new subject or answering “who/what?”

N が i-adj です / N が na-adj です highlights which thing has that quality. For example, “Which is spicy?” → “This one が spicy.”

Place に N が いる / ある states that N exists in a place. Use いる (iru) for people/animals and ある (aru) for things/plants.

Person は N が 好きです / ほしいです etc. marks N (the liked/wanted/skill thing) with が. The person is often the topic with は.

Question words + が is standard when the subject is unknown: だれ (dare, who) が, なに (nani, what) が, どれ (dore, which) が.

Mini Patterns and Roles

• Place に N が ある / いる
• Person は N が 好きです / きらいです
• N1 / N2 が i-adj です
• だれ / なに / どれ が V-ま

Question Words + が (Quick Guide)

Form	Meaning
だれが (dare ga)	who (as subject)
なにが (nani ga)	what (as subject)
どれが (dore ga)	which (as subject, among choices)

Usage Tips

• Use が to introduce or emphasize the subject; use は to talk about an already known topic.
• With あります (arimasu) and います (imasu), the existing thing takes が; the location uses に.
• With 好きです (suki desu) and ほしいです (hoshii desu), the liked/wanted thing is marked by が.

Example:

• 私の金魚が有名です。
• Watashi no kingyo ga yuumei desu.
• My goldfish is famous.

Example Sentences

• 図書館にカバがいます。
• Toshokan ni kaba ga imasu.
• There is a hippo in the library.

• 私は宿題が好きです。
• Watashi wa shukudai ga suki desu.
• I like homework.

• だれが忍者ですか。
• Dare ga ninja desu ka.
• Who is the ninja?

• このケーキが辛いです。
• Kono keeki ga karai desu.
• This cake is spicy.

• 猫が新聞を読みます。
• Neko ga shinbun o yomimasu.
• The cat reads the newspaper.

Quick Practice

(Answers and explanations are right under this section.)

Multiple-Choice

1. Choose the correct sentence that uses が to mark the subject of existence.
   • A) 冷蔵庫にUFOがあります。(Reizouko ni UFO ga arimasu.)
   • B) 冷蔵庫はUFOをあります。(Reizouko wa UFO o arimasu.)
   • C) 冷蔵庫でUFOとあります。(Reizouko de UFO to arimasu.)
   • D) 冷蔵庫にUFOやあります。(Reizouko ni UFO ya arimasu.)

2. Choose the sentence that correctly uses が with 上手です.
   • A) 私のハムスターはダンスが上手です。(Watashi no hamusutaa wa dansu ga jouzu desu.)
   • B) 私のハムスターはダンスを上手です。(Watashi no hamusutaa wa dansu o jouzu desu.)
   • C) 私のハムスターとダンスが上手です。(Watashi no hamusutaa to dansu ga jouzu desu.)
   • D) 私のハムスターはダンスや上手です。(Watashi no hamusutaa wa dansu ya jouzu desu.)

3. Which sentence correctly asks “Which is spicy?” using が?
   • A) どれが辛いですか。(Dore ga karai desu ka.)
   • B) どれは辛いですか。(Dore wa karai desu ka.)
   • C) どれを辛いですか。(Dore o karai desu ka.)
   • D) どれや辛いですか。(Dore ya karai desu ka.)

4. Choose the correct particle for the blank.
   空にドラゴン_____います。(Sora ni doragon _____ imasu.)
   • A) が
   • B) を
   • C) は
   • D) と

5. Choose the correct sentence using ほしいです with が.
   • A) わたしはタイムマシンがほしいです。(Watashi wa taimu mashin ga hoshii desu.)
   • B) わたしがタイムマシンをほしいです。(Watashi ga taimu mashin o hoshii desu.)
   • C) わたしはタイムマシンとほしいです。(Watashi wa taimu mashin to hoshii desu.)
   • D) わたしはタイムマシンでもほしいです。(Watashi wa taimu mashin demo hoshii desu.)

Spot-the-Error

6. Spot the error: Which ONE sentence has a mistake with が?
   • A) だれは宇宙人ですか。(Dare wa uchuujin desu ka.)
   • B) だれがヒーローですか。(Dare ga hiroo desu ka.)
   • C) 私は先生が好きです。(Watashi wa sensei ga suki desu.)

7. Spot the error: Which ONE sentence has a mistake with が/あります・います?
   • A) 公園にロボットをあります。(Kouen ni robotto o arimasu.)
   • B) 地下室にピアノがあります。(Chikashitsu ni piano ga arimasu.)
   • C) 学校に恐竜がいます。(Gakkou ni kyouryuu ga imasu.)

Translation

8. Translate into Japanese using が: Who is the alien?

9. Translate into Japanese using が: Under the bed, there is a monster.

10. Translate into Japanese using が: I like broccoli.

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Answers and Explanations

1. A) 冷蔵庫にUFOがあります。(Reizouko ni UFO ga arimasu.) — With あります/います, the existing thing takes が and the place takes に.
2. A) 私のハムスターはダンスが上手です。(Watashi no hamusutaa wa dansu ga jouzu desu.) — With skills like 上手です, the skill (ダンス) is marked by が.
3. A) どれが辛いですか。(Dore ga karai desu ka.) — Question words used as subject take が.
4. A) 空にドラゴンがいます。(Sora ni doragon ga imasu.) — The subject that exists (ドラゴン) is marked by が with います.
5. A) わたしはタイムマシンがほしいです。(Watashi wa taimu mashin ga hoshii desu.) — The wanted thing is marked by が with ほしいです.
6. A) だれは宇宙人ですか。(Dare wa uchuujin desu ka.) — This is wrong because question words as subjects use が, not は.
7. A) 公園にロボットをあります。(Kouen ni robotto o arimasu.) — This is wrong because あります requires the subject with が, not を.
8. だれが宇宙人ですか。(Dare ga uchuujin desu ka.) — Question-word subject takes が.
9. ベッドの下にモンスターがいます。(Beddo no shita ni monsutaa ga imasu.) — Place に + subject が + います for living/animate things.
10. 私はブロッコリーが好きです。(Watashi wa burokkorii ga suki desu.) — With 好きです, the liked thing is marked by が and the person is often the topic with は.