Kakikomi / Guides
Understanding Japanese grammar while you read
You know every word in the sentence and still don't get it. That is almost always grammar: an ending, a particle or a small helper that changes the meaning of everything around it. A word dictionary can't help here.
By Mael Gerhard · updated 3 October 2026
Why dictionaries don't help with grammar
A dictionary entry covers one word. Japanese grammar lives in what is attached to words: verb endings, auxiliary verbs, particles. 出かけてしまった is not a word you will find as such. It is 出かける plus 〜て plus しまう plus the past ending, and the meaning sits in the combination.
Learn patterns, not rules
Patterns are small, reusable units with a typical meaning. Four you will meet constantly:
- 〜ている — an action in progress or a resulting state. 雨が降っている。 It is raining.
- 〜てしまう — something is completed, often with regret. 宿題を忘れてしまった。 I forgot my homework (and I wish I hadn't). In speech you will also hear the short form 〜ちゃう.
- 〜のに — although, with a note of surprise or annoyance. 雨が降っているのに出かけた。 He went out although it was raining.
- 〜ずに — without doing. 傘を持たずに出かけた。 He left without taking an umbrella.
Ask for the pattern, not the translation
When a sentence stops you, resist asking for a full translation straight away. Find the unfamiliar piece, name it, and ask what it does. “What does 〜てしまう add here?” teaches you something you will reuse. A translation only solves this one sentence.
Why readings should come from a dictionary
Language models explain grammar well, but they can invent readings and meanings with great confidence. A wrong reading that you memorise is hard to unlearn. A sensible tool keeps the two jobs apart: facts such as readings and meanings come from a dictionary, and the model explains how the sentence fits together.
Keep what you learn
Write the pattern and one example sentence in a notebook, ideally one you took from your own reading. Review it a week later. Seeing 〜てしまう in a story you read yourself beats ten textbook examples.
How it works with Kakikomi
Kakikomi names grammar patterns in a sentence on your device, for free, with their JLPT level. When you want more, Sensei explains the pattern in a few lines, answers follow-up questions (“a simpler example?”, “how do I say it politely?”) and keeps everything in your grammar notebook.
Readings and meanings always come from the dictionary, never from the AI. Sensei is part of the free beta for testers.
Free for testers, with a month of Pro and Sensei. iPhone, iPad and Android.
More guides:
Look up a kanji you can't read
Read Japanese on an Android tablet