Japanese Verb Forms: Polite (Masu) vs. Dictionary Form

All Japanese verbs have two primary forms that you need to know: the Dictionary Form and the Polite Form (ます-form).

• Dictionary Form (辞書形 - jishokei): This is the "plain" or "casual" form of the verb. It's how you find verbs in a dictionary. You use it when talking to close friends and family. (e.g., 食べる, 飲む)
• Polite Form (ます形 - masu-kei): This is the polite form that ends in 〜ます. It's used in most everyday situations, especially when speaking to people you don't know well, teachers, or colleagues. The 42 patterns you learned mostly used this form.

In the last lesson, you learned the 3 verb groups. Now, you'll see why that's so important. The rules for changing a verb from its dictionary form to its ます-form depend entirely on its group!

Changing Dictionary Form to ます-Form

Group 1 (u-verbs)

For u-verbs, the final vowel sound, which is always a 'u' sound, changes to an 'i' sound, and then you add ます (masu).

The rule: Change the final hiragana from the う-column to the い-column and add ます.

Group 2 (ru-verbs)

This is the easy group! Just remove the final る (ru) and add ます (masu).

Group 3 (Irregular Verbs)

These two simply must be memorized. Pay attention to the change in reading for 来る!

Conjugating the ます-Form

Once you have the ます-form, you can easily create the four basic polite conjugations by changing the ending. This works the same way for all verb groups.

You've now learned the crucial link between the dictionary form you'll see in books and the polite ます-form you'll use in conversation. This skill is your gateway to speaking and learning Japanese more independently!