Page:An elementary grammar of the Japanese language.djvu/20

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6
Of Adjectives.

Of Case.

There are three cases; namely, the Nominative, Possessive, and Objective.

The nominative is rendered by placing the sign wa, ga, or mo after nouns; as, otoko ga or wa, mo, ikimasu, man goes.

The possessive is formed by putting the sign no after nouns; as, otoko no kimono, man’s dress.

The objective is rendered by the sign wo, ni, or gaOtoko ga onna wo utimasita, A man has beaten a woman. In the potential mood, ga is used as a sign of the objective case.

Note—The signs of the nominative, wa and mo are in opposition to each other. When two things or persons do the same actions, mo is used; as, Onna mo otoko mo ikimasu, Both man and woman go. But when they do some different actions, wa is used; as, Onna wa kayerimasu ga (but) otoko wa orimasu, Woman goes away, but man stays.
Ga is sometimes used in an emphatic sentence; as, Watakusi ga simasita, I have done it.
Ni, the sign of the objective case, answers to the dative in Latin; and in English it may be translated into ‘to,’ or ‘for;’ as Kane wo otoko ni yare, Give money to the man.

Of Adjectives.

An adjective is a word which qualifies a noun.