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Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese Syllabus
The Reading and Writing in Japanese syllabus for Japanese in full: 2 chapters and 4 topics, every one listed below, plus 50 Reading and Writing in Japanese flashcards with answers.
Reading and Writing in Japanese syllabus: all 2 chapters
Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics.
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Reading Practice
2 topics- Reading Simple Texts
- Reading News and Articles
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Writing Practice
2 topics- Writing Short Sentences
- Writing Essays and Reports
Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese flashcards — 50 questions with answers
What are the three scripts used in written Japanese?
Hiragana (phonetic, native words/grammar), Katakana (phonetic, loanwords/emphasis), and Kanji (logographic characters borrowed from Chinese).
What is hiragana primarily used for when reading simple texts?
Native Japanese words, grammatical particles, verb/adjective endings (okurigana), and words for which the kanji is uncommon or not yet learned.
What is katakana primarily used for?
Foreign loanwords (gairaigo), foreign names, onomatopoeia, scientific/technical terms, and words written for emphasis.
What is furigana and why is it helpful for reading simple texts?
Furigana are small hiragana printed above or beside kanji to show their reading, helping learners read kanji they don't yet know.
What are the three main particles that mark grammatical roles, and what does each mark?
は (wa) marks the topic, が (ga) marks the subject, and を (o) marks the direct object.
What is the basic word order of a Japanese sentence?
Subject–Object–Verb (SOV); the verb almost always comes at the end of the clause.
Which particle indicates location of existence, and which indicates direction/goal of movement?
に (ni) marks location of existence and goal/direction; へ (e) marks direction. で (de) marks the location where an action takes place.
How is a polite present/future affirmative verb typically ended in simple texts?
With the ~ます (masu) form, e.g. 食べます (tabemasu, 'eat/will eat').
How do you form the polite negative of a ~ます verb?
Replace ~ます with ~ません (masen), e.g. 食べません (tabemasen, 'do not eat').
What is the difference between です and である as sentence-ending copulas?
です is the polite spoken/written copula ('is/am/are'); である is the formal written copula used in essays, reports, and news articles.
When reading, how can you tell a question in plain Japanese text?
The sentence ends with the question particle か (ka), or in casual writing with a rising か-less form marked by ？.
What does the particle と mean when connecting two nouns?
It means 'and' (exhaustive listing), e.g. 犬と猫 = 'a dog and a cat'.
What is the reading strategy called 'scanning' as applied to simple Japanese texts?
Quickly moving the eyes over the text to locate specific information (numbers, dates, names) without reading every word.
What is 'skimming' when reading Japanese?
Reading rapidly to grasp the general gist or main idea of a passage without focusing on every detail.
In simple texts, what does the ~ている form express?
An ongoing action (progressive) or a resulting continuous state, e.g. 食べている ('is eating').
What punctuation mark is the Japanese full stop (period), and what is the comma?
The full stop is 。(kuten) and the comma is 、(tōten).
Why does written Japanese generally not use spaces between words?
The mix of kanji, hiragana, and katakana provides visual boundaries, so word separation is inferred from script changes and context rather than spaces.
What is 'on'yomi' versus 'kun'yomi' for a kanji?
On'yomi is the Chinese-derived reading (often used in compounds); kun'yomi is the native Japanese reading (often used when a kanji stands alone).
In news and articles, what register/style of Japanese is standard?
The formal written style using the plain/dictionary form with the である or だ・である copula (常体), producing concise, objective sentences.
What is a 見出し (midashi) in a Japanese newspaper?
A headline; it is a condensed, often verb-final or noun-ending phrase summarizing the article's main point.
Show the other 30 Reading and Writing in Japanese flashcards
How are numbers and dates commonly written in Japanese news articles?
With Arabic numerals plus kanji counters/units, e.g. 2026年7月1日 for a date and 5人 for '5 people'.
What does the grammatical pattern ～によると mean, and where is it common?
It means 'according to ~' and is very common in news articles to cite a source, e.g. 警察によると ('according to the police').
What is the passive voice pattern in Japanese, common in news writing?
Verb changes to the ～れる/～られる form, e.g. 逮捕される ('to be arrested'); it emphasizes the affected party or an objective tone.
What does the pattern ～という mean when reading articles?
It means 'that (something is the case)' or 'it is said that', reporting information, e.g. 中止になったという ('it is reported that it was cancelled').
What are 漢語 (kango) and why do they dominate news vocabulary?
Kango are Sino-Japanese compound words (multiple kanji); they are concise and formal, making them ideal for the dense style of news and academic writing.
What does the connective しかし signal in an article?
It means 'however' and introduces a contrast or contradiction with the preceding statement.
What does 一方 (いっぽう) signal as a discourse connector?
It means 'on the other hand / meanwhile' and introduces a contrasting or parallel point, common in articles.
What is the difference between だ and である when reading formal text?
Both are plain copulas ('is'), but である is more formal and literary, preferred in essays, editorials, and academic reports, while だ is more conversational-plain.
What does the pattern ～に対して mean in articles?
It means 'toward / with respect to / in contrast to', indicating the target of an action or attitude, or a comparison.
What does ～ため(に) express in expository writing?
It expresses cause/reason ('because of') or purpose ('in order to'), e.g. 雨のため中止 ('cancelled due to rain').
When writing a short sentence, how do you connect two verbs/clauses meaning 'and then'?
Use the て-form of the first verb, e.g. 起きて、食べます ('I get up and then eat').
How do you make a polite request in a short sentence?
Use the て-form + ください, e.g. 見てください ('please look').
What is the te-form rule for a verb ending in う, つ, る?
The ending changes to って, e.g. 買う→買って, 待つ→待って, ある→あって.
How do you express 'want to do' something in a short sentence?
Attach ～たい to the verb stem, e.g. 食べたい ('I want to eat'); it conjugates like an い-adjective.
How do you conjugate an い-adjective to negative past, e.g. 'was not big'?
大きい→大きくなかった; drop い, add くなかった.
How do you conjugate a な-adjective to modify a noun directly?
Keep な before the noun, e.g. 静かな部屋 ('a quiet room').
How do you express 'because' linking a reason clause to a result in one sentence?
Use から (subjective reason) or ので (softer/objective reason), e.g. 忙しいから行きません ('I won't go because I'm busy').
How do you form a simple conditional 'if/when' with ～たら?
Add ～たら to the plain past form, e.g. 雨が降ったら ('if/when it rains').
How do you express ability ('can do') in a short sentence?
Use the potential form, e.g. 食べる→食べられる, 書く→書ける ('can write'), or ～ことができる.
How do you express comparison 'A is more ~ than B'?
Use AはBより + adjective, e.g. 東京は大阪より大きい ('Tokyo is bigger than Osaka').
How do you express the superlative 'the most ~' in a sentence?
Use 一番 + adjective, e.g. 一番高い ('the most expensive / tallest').
What is the typical four-part structure (起承転結) used to organize essays and narratives?
起 (introduction), 承 (development), 転 (turn/twist), 結 (conclusion)—a classical rhetorical structure for Japanese compositions.
What is the more Western-style essay structure often taught for reports?
序論 (introduction/thesis), 本論 (body/argument with evidence), and 結論 (conclusion/summary).
In formal writing, why should you avoid mixing です・ます style with である style?
Register consistency (文体の統一) is required; an essay/report should stay entirely in one style—usually the plain である体 throughout.
What is a 原稿用紙 and one key rule for using it?
A genkō yōshi is a Japanese manuscript grid paper; one character (including punctuation) goes in each square, and the essay is typically written vertically with paragraph indents of one square.
What does the essay connector したがって mean?
'Therefore / consequently'—it introduces a logical conclusion drawn from preceding evidence, common in formal reports.
What does the connector また mean in report writing?
'Also / moreover / furthermore'—it adds an additional point of the same weight.
What phrase commonly introduces a personal opinion or thesis in an essay?
～と思う ('I think that') or the more formal ～と考える／～と考えられる ('it is thought that'), the latter preferred in objective reports.
What is the difference between 話し言葉 and 書き言葉, and why does it matter for essays?
話し言葉 is spoken/colloquial language; 書き言葉 is written language. Essays and reports require 書き言葉—avoiding contractions like ～ちゃう and colloquial particles like よ・ね.
What is a concluding phrase commonly used to summarize a report's argument?
以上のことから ('from the above') or 結論として ('in conclusion'), used to introduce the final summary of findings.
Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese FAQ
What is in the Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese syllabus?
Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese is split into 2 chapters: Reading Practice and Writing Practice. Together they contain 4 topics.
How many chapters are in Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese?
2 chapters, containing 4 topics. The largest chapter is Reading Practice, with 2 topics.
Are there flashcards for Japanese Reading and Writing in Japanese?
Yes — a 50-card Reading and Writing in Japanese deck, printed in full in the flashcards section of this page and available in the Examius app with spaced repetition. The free plan covers one exam of your choice, including its flashcards; Examius Pro, a one-time purchase, unlocks every other exam and deck.