A1 Japanese Grammar || Japanese Direction Particles
Today we will study an essential component of the language: the Japanese direction particles.
There are 2 direction particles you’ll have to get the hang of in Japanese: に ni and へ he.
Both can carry the general meaning of “to” in English.
Japanese Direction Particles | Focus on に (ni)
Japanese Direction Particles | Focus on へ (he)
Japanese Direction Particles | に vs へ
Japanese Direction Particles | Without verbs
Japanese Direction Particles | FAQ’s
Japanese Direction Particles | に ni
Let’s start with the multifaceted に ni.
Most verbs to do with motion (to go, to walk, to go home, etc) are paired with に ni, and many verbs that pair with words like “to” or “on” in English are paired with に ni (to sit down, to get on, to go in, etc).
Also, recipients are marked with に ni in sentences describing giving or receiving:
| Japanese | Romaji | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 学校に行きました。 | Gakkou ni ikimashita. | I went to school. | |
| 日本に行く。 | Nihon ni iku. | I’m going to go to Japan. | |
| 駅に歩いて、電車に乗りました。 | Eki ni aruite, densha ni norimashita. | I walked to the station and got on a train. | Here, we see に ni twice. First, the motion of walking towards the station is indicated. Then, the motion of getting on a train is indicated. |
| ソファに座って、友達に電話しました。 | Sofa ni suwatte, tomodachi ni denwa shimashita. | I sat on the sofa and called my friend. | Here, the first に ni is indicating the motion of sitting down. The second is indicating the recipient (or direction) of the phone call. |
| ベンジャミンさんはお母さんにプレゼントをあげました。 | Benjamin san wa okaasan ni purezento o agemashita. | Benjamin gave his mother a present. | Here, に ni is indicating that the mother is receiving the present. |
| コンビニに入りました。 | Konbini ni hairimashita. | I went into the convenience store. | Here, に ni indicates where the person is entering (入る hairu). |
Japanese Location Particles | へ he
When used as a particle へ he is pronounced え e (from now on it will be written as へ e in this article).
へ is like に in that it is used with verbs of motion.
Most sentences with a motion verb which use に ni can use へ e instead.
We can substitute in some of the に ni sentences we just looked at:
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| 学校へ行きました。 | Gakkou e ikimashita. | I went to school. |
| 日本へ行く。 | Nihon e iku. | I’m going to go to Japan. |
| 駅に歩いて、電車に乗りました。1 | Eki ni aruite, densha ni norimashita. | I walked to the station and got on a train. |
Alongside the use with motion, へ can also be used when welcoming someone somewhere:
| イギリスへようこそ！ | Igirisu e youkoso! | Welcome to England! |
へ is also used to start a letter:
| 田中さんへ | Tanaka san e | To Mr Tanaka, |
へ can also be used for figurative things like goals.
| JLPT合格へ向けて頑張っています。 | JLPT goukaku e mukete ganbatteimasu. | I’m working towards passing the JLPT. |
Owing to its somewhat poetic nuance, へ is often used in the titles of songs, movies, comics, or novels.
Japanese Location Particles | に vs へ
へ is more poetic than に. へ gives the feeling of moving towards something, whereas に feels more like a point on a map.
Look at the nuance difference in these two sentences:
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| 福岡に行きます。 | Fukuoka ni ikimasu. | I will go to Fukuoka. |
| 福岡へ行きます。 | Fukuoka e ikimasu. | I will head to Fukuoka. |
Using へ e gives the second sentence more directionality and therefore would be more like “head to”.
Let’s look at another set of examples:
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| スーパーへ走った。 | su-pa- e hashitta. | I ran to the supermarket. |
| スーパーに走って行った。 | su-pa- ni hashitte itta. | I ran to the supermarket. |
NOTE || We don’t say “スーパーに走った Su-pa ni hashitta”. See below.
Owing to the “moving towards something” feeling, using へ e with 走った hashitta is fine here. But if you use に ni, it doesn’t sound like it has a direction.
So, adding 行った itta adds the directionality. Think of it as, “I to the supermarket by running” vs “I went to the supermarket by running”.
In basic terms, if it’s a pure motion verb (like to go, to come) then you can use either, but if it describes how you go (walking, running, swimming) then you need to add a pure motion verb for ni and don’t with へe.
Japanese Location Particles | No Verb
In Japanese, words are often dropped, and the full meaning is understood from the context. It can be difficult to wrap your head around this at first.
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| 北海道へ | Hokkaido e | I’m going to Hokkaido. |
Here, if someone were to ask you where you’re going over winter vacation, you could simply answer with this.
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| どうぞこちらへ | Douzo, kochira e | Come this way. |
When you go into a restaurant you might hear this. The full sentence would be どうぞこちらへ来てください Douzo kochira e kite kudasai.
NOTE || Verb dropping normally happens with へ because it has some directionality included already.
Are you a Flexi Classes student already?
Learn more about Japanese Direction Particles in the following Flexi lessons:
に | There Is A Dog (A1, Chapter 2)
へ | How Can I Get There? (A1, Chapter 4)
に + へ | I Am In The Starbucks (A1+, Chapter 1)
Not a Flexi Student yet?
Congrats! You can now add the Japanese direction particles to your list of mastered particles.
To sum up:
- に and へ are both used as in “to” with pure motion verbs (to go, to return, to leave, etc)
- に marks the receiver of something.
- に needs a pure motion verb if a verb describing how movement happens is used (to swim, to walk, etc) whereas へ doesn’t.
- へ can be used without a verb.
- へ is used for welcoming, letter writing, and titles.
Need a teacher? Check out our online Japanese classes.
Japanese Direction Particles | FAQ’s
What are the Japanese direction particles?
The Japanese direction particles are に (ni) and へ (he).
– に and へ are both used as in “to” with pure motion verbs (to go, to return, to leave, etc)
– に marks the receiver of something.
– に needs a pure motion verb if a verb describing how movement happens is used (to swim, to walk, etc) whereas へ doesn’t.
– へ can be used without a verb.
– へ is used for welcoming, letter writing, and titles.
How to use に (ni)?
Most verbs to do with motion (to go, to walk, to go home, etc) are paired with に ni, and many verbs that pair with words like “to” or “on” in English are paired with に ni (to sit down, to get on, to go in, etc).
Also, recipients are marked with に ni in sentences describing giving or receiving:
学校に行きました。Gakkou ni ikimashita. I went to school.
日本に行く。 Nihon ni iku. I’m going to go to Japan.
How to use へ (he)?
When used as a particle へ he is pronounced え e (from now on it will be written as へ e in this article).
へ is like に in that it is used with verbs of motion.
Most sentences with a motion verb which use に ni can use へ e instead.
学校へ行きました。 Gakkou e ikimashita. I went to school.
Alongside the use with motion, へ can also be used when welcoming someone somewhere:
イギリスへようこそ！ Igirisu e youkoso! Welcome to England!
へ is also used to start a letter:
田中さんへ Tanaka san e To Mr Tanaka,
What are the Japanese location particles?
The Japanese location particles are に ni and で de.
に is used for the state of existing or being somewhere.
に is also used for time, helping set the scene of a verb.
で is used to mark the location of an action.
What is the Japanese possessive particle?
The Japanese possession particle is の (no).
We add the particle の to show the possession of something. It is like adding ‘s to the end of a word.
彼の帽子 kare no boushi | His hat
犬の毛 inu no ke | Dog’s fur
Where to learn more Japanese grammar?
You can learn more grammar like this in our Japanese Grammar Bank.
If you’d like to study with a teacher, you should have a look at our online lessons on Flexi Classes (we even have a 7 day free trial!)
Would you rather study Japanese in Japan? We offer group and individual classes in Tokyo.