**Japanese particles(jyoshi -助詞)**

 

1. Today's Japanese words

**Japanese particles(jyoshi -助詞)**

1. **を (Wo / O)**: This particle marks the **direct object** of a verb. It indicates what is being affected by the action. For instance:

   - "肉を食べる" (niku wo taberu) means "to eat meat." Here, "niku" (meat) is the direct object marked by "wo."

2. **は (Wa)**: The topic marker. It introduces the **subject** of the sentence. For example:

   - "私は日本語を勉強しています" (watashi wa Nihongo wo benkyou shiteimasu) means "I am studying Japanese." In this sentence, "watashi" (I) is the subject marked by "wa."

3. **が (Ga)**: The subject marker. It highlights the **subject** of the sentence. For instance:

   - "猫が好きです" (neko ga suki desu) means "I like cats." Here, "neko" (cat) is the subject marked by "ga."

4. **で (De)**: This particle indicates the **location** or **means** of an action. For example:

   - "公園で遊ぶ" (kouen de asobu) means "to play in the park." "Kouen" (park) is the location marked by "de."

5. **へ (E)**: The direction marker. It indicates **movement toward** a place. For instance:

   - "学校へ行く" (gakkou e iku) means "to go to school." "Gakkou" (school) is the destination marked by "e."

6. **から (Kara)**: The "because" or "since" particle. It explains the reason behind an action. For example:

   - "雨が降っているから傘を持って行きます" (ame ga futte iru kara kasa wo motte ikimasu) means "I'll take an umbrella because it's raining." "Ame" (rain) is the reason marked by "kara."

2. Today's topic

 **Japanese particles(jyoshi -助詞)**. These tiny elements play a crucial role in Japanese grammar by connecting words and defining their relationships within a sentence. Think of them as the "glue" that holds sentences together. Similar to English articles like "the," "a," and "an," as well as prepositions like "to," "in," and "on," Japanese particles help clarify the meaning of a sentence. 

1. **は (Wa)**: This particle indicates the **subject** of the sentence. For example, in the sentence "私はケーキを食べた" (watashi wa ke-ki wo tabeta), "wa" tells us that the subject is "I."

2. **を (Wo)**: This particle indicates the **direct object** that receives the action. In the same sentence, "wo" marks "cake" as the object that was eaten.

Japanese sentences don't use spaces, so particles are essential for understanding where words begin and end, as well as their roles in the sentence. Let's look at a longer example:

> 昨日の夜は勉強しながらテレビを見ていたので、あまり集中していませんでした。

> (Kinou no yoru wa benkyou shinagara terebi wo mite ita node, amari shuuchuu shite imasen deshita.)

>

> Translation: "I was watching TV while studying last night, so I wasn't very focused."

In this longer sentence, the particles help clarify the roles of different words. For instance, "wa" marks the topic ("last night"), and "wo" indicates the direct object ("TV"). Without these particles, the sentence would be harder to read and understand¹. 

3- Today’s news

No sitting allowed? Japan to question businesses on all-day standing in service industry

https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20240525/p2a/00m/0na/002000c

Japan's fertility rate sank to record low in 2023: estimate

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Society/Japan-s-fertility-rate-sank-to-record-low-in-2023-estimate