Japanese Noun Particles

Part of the Japanese For Dummies Cheat Sheet

English has articles and prepositions, Japanese has noun particles to convey the subject of the sentence, the start point, end point, and direction of the action, and even the subject of the sentence. The following table shows the Japanese particles with pronunciation in parentheses, their English equivalent, if they have one, and their role.

Particle	English	Major Function
de (deh)	in, by, with, at	Specifies how the action takes place, showing the location, the manner, the method, the tool, background condition, or the basis of the action.
e (eh)	to, toward	Specifies the direction of the action.
ga (gah)	No equivalent	Specifies the subject of the sentence.
ka (ka)	or	Specifies choices.
kara (kah-rah)	from	Specifies the starting point of the action.
made (mah-deh)	until	Specifies the ending point of the action.
mo (moh)	also	Specifies added items.
ni (nee)	to, on, at	Specifies the target of the action, the location of existence, or the time of the action.
no (noh)	’s	Specifies the owner of an item or the modifier of an item.
o (oh)	No equivalent	Specifies the direct object of the sentence.
to (toh)	and, with	Specifies listed items, or the co-agent of the action.
wa (wah)	No equivalent	Specifies the topic of the sentence.