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By Yuliya Geikhman Last updated:

The Complete Guide to Japanese Pronouns in All Their Forms

In English, referring to someone is as easy as saying “I” and “you.”

Japanese personal pronouns are quite a different matter. Whether you say “watashi,” “boku” or “atashi” can make a world of a difference in how you present yourself to others. 

There are many other nuances to learn about Japanese pronouns. Let this guide be your map to proper pronoun usage in your Japanese studies.

Learn all about possessive, reflexive, interrogative and all the other pronouns in Japanese. 

Whether you’re chatting with pals or diving into your favorite Japanese show, understanding pronouns like a pro adds a whole new level to your language game!

Contents

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Personal Pronouns in Japanese

Personal pronouns are used to replace specific nouns, particularly names of people. They’re classified based on the grammatical person (first person, second person and third person) and number (singular or plural).

The main personal pronouns in English are “I,” “you,” “he,” “she,” “it,” “they” and “we.” 

In Japanese, there are a number of different ways of expressing personal pronouns, and which one you use can say a lot about yourself. Some personal pronouns are considered more masculine or feminine, formal or informal and some are even downright rude. Below are some of the most common personal pronouns. 

Throughout this post, I’ll share plenty of examples for each type of pronoun. Click on any word or example sentence to hear it pronounced! And if you want further help studying each pronoun, I recommend looking them up on FluentU, for plenty of more context in authentic media.

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First person personal pronouns

More ways to say “I”:

 


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Second person personal pronouns

More ways to say “you”:

 


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Third person personal pronouns

First-person plural pronoun

Third-person plural pronoun

Possessive Pronouns in Japanese

Possessive pronouns are the type that show belonging and ownership, like “my,” “his” and “theirs.” In Japanese, forming the possessive pronoun is as easy as combining the appropriate pronoun with the possessive particle の (no).

Reflexive Pronouns in Japanese

Reflexive pronouns are pronouns that refer back to the subject of the sentence, indicating that the subject is also the recipient of the action. In English, reflexive pronouns are formed by adding the suffix “-self” or “-selves” to personal pronouns, like  “myself,” “yourself” and “ourselves.”

Unlike English, which has a range of reflexive pronouns, Japanese primarily uses one word: 自分  (jibun). This versatile pronoun can express self-action in various situations. For example: 

You can also use 自分自身  (jibun jishin) to add emphasis to the reflexive action. Use it when you want to highlight the self-directed nature of the action or for clarity. For example: 

Relative Pronouns in Japanese

Relative pronouns are words that introduce relative clauses in a sentence. These pronouns serve as a link between the main clause and the subordinate (relative) clause, providing additional information about a noun or pronoun in the main clause. Common relative pronouns in English include “who,” “whom,” “whose,” “which” and “that.” 

Unlike English, Japanese doesn’t have direct equivalents to relative pronouns. Instead, it uses a different approach to express relationships between nouns within a sentence. Here’s a breakdown of this system:

Here are two common ways to create relative clauses in Japanese:

Using 〜の (no)

This particle is often used to indicate possession and is also used to create relative clauses.

For example:

Using 〜こと (koto)

〜こと (koto) is a nominalizing particle that turns a verb into a noun. It can be used to create relative clauses.

Relative clauses in Japanese are flexible, and the choice between using 〜の (no) or 〜こと (koto) depends on the nature of the clause and the verb involved. Understanding these structures is essential for constructing complex sentences in Japanese.

Demonstrative Pronouns in Japanese

Demonstrative pronouns are words used to identify or point to specific nouns in a sentence. They indicate whether the noun is near or far in distance or time. In English, the primary demonstrative pronouns are “this,” “that,” “these” and “those.” 

In Japanese, demonstrative pronouns are often expressed using demonstrative determiners along with the noun they modify. The most common demonstrative determiners are これ (kore), それ (sore), あれ (are) and their variations. While these aren’t standalone pronouns, they function similarly to demonstrative pronouns in English. 

Additionally, these demonstrative determiners can be combined with the particle “の” (no) to modify nouns directly. For example: 

Interrogative Pronouns in Japanese

Interrogative pronouns are pronouns used to introduce questions. They help seek information about people, things, or qualities. In English, the main interrogative pronouns are “who,” “whom,” “whose,” “what” and “which.” Here they are in Japanese:

It’s important to note that the choice of interrogative pronoun depends on the specific question you want to ask. For example, you would use 誰 (dare) to ask about a person, but 何 (nani) to ask about an object.

Here are some additional interrogative pronouns, used less frequently:

Indefinite Pronouns in Japanese

Indefinite pronouns are words that don’t refer to any specific person, thing or amount. They’re general and vague, representing non-specific items or individuals. Common examples include words like “everyone,” “someone,” “anybody,” “nothing” and “each.” These pronouns are used when the identity or quantity of the subject is unknown or irrelevant to the context.

Here are some common indefinite pronouns in Japanese:

 

Pronouns are such an important part of everyday speech, that it’s crucial to learn them. By getting to the end of this thorough guide to Japanese pronouns, you’re well on your way to sounding more natural in the language. Well done, you!

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