Possessives

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 23 May 2014

• #1

Hi,

To say that something is mine, for example, a katana, I'd say

この 刀 は 私 の もの です

To say that something is yours

この 刀 は あなた の もの です

Would it be correct to use 私 の もの and あなた の もの in negative form (で は ありません)?

I've read around the internet that it's possible to say

この 刀 は あなたで は ありません, without the の もの part. Is that correct?

When would I use の もの or not use の もの?

Thanks in advance

 

lanthas

　

27 Apr 2014

940

243

• 24 May 2014

• #2

Yes, you can use （この刀は）私のものじゃない. Also, if the katana is already the topic of conversation, you can simply say 私のです/私のじゃありません.

Can't say whether the sentence without のもの is valid though. It sounds like "this sword is not you".

 

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 25 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #3

lanthas said:

Yes, you can use （この刀は）私のものじゃない. Also, if the katana is already the topic of conversation, you can simply say 私のです/私のじゃありません.

Can't say whether the sentence without のもの is valid though. It sounds like "this sword is not you".

Click to expand...

So in general, I can use 私の or あなたの to refer that something is mine or yours without adding もの?

 

lanthas

　

27 Apr 2014

940

243

• 25 May 2014

• #4

Yes, as long as that something is already the topic. It's like "mine" and "yours" in English: when talking about swords, you can simply say "this is mine", "yours is rather heavy" etc. instead of repeating the word "sword" all the time.

Also, you can say これは私の刀です (i.e. with 刀 but without もの).

 

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 26 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #5

Continuing with the topic, would it be correct to say

寿司 は 好物 です

without adding 私の, as it's clear i'm talking about my favourite food

or is it necessary to say

寿司 は私の 好物 です

?

 

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

Moderator

Fifteen-year veteran

22 Feb 2008

18,266

4,926

• 26 May 2014

• #6

You don't need to say 私の, but now I'm wondering whether I should enter the forest of は・が problem...

 

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 26 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #7

If it's not too advanced, please do, I'm always open to learning new interesting stuff about Japanese

 

Angel Valis

黒川

15 Jul 2010

290

27

• 26 May 2014

• #8

thesuker said:

If it's not too advanced, please do, I'm always open to learning new interesting stuff about Japanese

Click to expand...

Haha, there's a reason he called it a forest. It's difficult for non-native speakers and even native speakers aren't always 100% sure which to use. There are entire books written on the subject.

 

Last edited by a moderator: 30 Sep 2016

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 26 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #9

So, if I were to say

寿司 は 好物 です

in Japan, would they understand my fav. food is sushi?

 

Last edited: 27 May 2014

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 27 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #10

Ive been reading a bit more about it and if i understand it correctly, id say 寿司は if sushi is already the topic of conversation and 寿司が if im changing the topic from something else to sushi or introducing it out of the blue. Did i get it right?

 

lanthas

　

27 Apr 2014

940

243

• 27 May 2014

• #11

The high-level rule is that は is neutral, while が places emphasis on the subject. So if you just want to say that sushi is your favorite food (even if it's a new topic), use は; if you want to emphasise that you like sushi *as opposed to something else* (perhaps something that your friend just mentioned), use が. Of course there's more to it, but this is the basics.

 

thesuker

先輩

20 May 2014

242

3

• 27 May 2014

• Thread starter
• #12

I'm using this as a reference to get my head around it Japanese Particles - use of particle wa and ga It mentions the contrast use you just talked about for が and other uses for both of them. Is it more or less a good page to read about it, or would you recommend something else?

Also, on another note,

それは椅子です or それは椅子あります

?

I understand あります is used for declaring the existence of an object, but I usually see です also used for it. Would it sound weird if I said それは椅子です?

Edit: figured it out myself... です would be the correct verb, as i'm describing それ

 

Last edited: 27 May 2014

lanthas

　

27 Apr 2014

940

243

• 27 May 2014

• #13

I'm still learning myself, but yes, that page seems to give a good overview. Of course, for in-depth studying, nothing beats a good textbook with a lot more examples.