Back
Advanced

Noun-Modifying Clauses

Relative clauses with no relative pronoun

A clause directly precedes the noun it modifies

There is no relative pronoun.

💬 Examples
私が買った本
watashi ga katta hon
the book (that) I bought
📝 Clause + noun, no 'that'
昨日見た映画
kinō mita eiga
the movie (I) saw yesterday
📝 Plain-form clause modifies 映画
The clause verb is in plain form

Always plain, then the noun.

💬 Examples
日本語を話す人
nihongo o hanasu hito
a person who speaks Japanese
📝 話す (plain) + 人
あそこに立っている人
asoko ni tatte iru hito
the person standing over there
📝 Progressive clause + noun
が often replaces は inside the clause

Subordinate clauses prefer が.

💬 Examples
母が作った料理
haha ga tsukutta ryōri
the food (my) mother made
📝 が (not は) inside the clause
値段が高い車
nedan ga takai kuruma
a car whose price is high
📝 が in a modifying clause