Japanese Grammar In Its Natural Habitat

ば

ば Japanese Grammar Lesson

Grammar Type: Conjunction

Essential Meaning: If

Construction: 

  • Sentence 1 ば Sentence 2
    • E.g. 飲のめばよくなる [If you drink eat, you’ll get better.]
  • Group 1 Verbs:
    • Verb conditional form + ば
      • E.g. 話はなせる = 話はなせば [If X speaks]
  • Group 2 Verbs:
    • Verb Stem + れば
      • E.g. 食たべる = 食たべれば [If X eats]
  • Irregular Verbs:
    • E.g. 来くる = 来くれば [If X comes]
    • E.g.する = すれば [If X does it]
  • い-Adjectives:
    • い-Adjective stem + ければ
      • E.g. 高たかい = 高たかければ [If X is expensive]
  • な-Adjectives:
    • な-Adjective stem + [ならば / であれば]
      • E.g. 静しずか = 静しずかならば / 静しずかであれば [If X is expensive]
  • Noun + Copula
    • Noun + [なら(ば) / であれば]
      • E.g. 先生せんせい = 先生せんせいなら(ば) / 先生せんせいであれば [If X is a teacher]

Notes:

  • ば expresses a general conditional relationship between two propositions (i.e. “If X is the case, then Y is / will be the case“). It can convey a general indicative statement (e.g. この薬くすりを飲のめばよくなる。[If you take this medicine, you’ll get well.]), it can convey hope or volition (e.g. 時間じかんがあれば東京とうきょうへ行いきたい。[If I have time, I want to go to Kyoto.]), or it can convey a command / request / suggestion (e.g. 見みたければ見みなさい。[If you want to see it, then see it.]).
  • Note that if the ば conditional conveys a command / request / suggestion, the predicate of Sentence 1 can NOT be an action.
    • E.g. 出来できればこれもやってください。[If you are able, please do this too.]. This sentence is acceptable because the predicate of Sentence 1 (i.e. 出来できる) is not an action but a potential form verb.
    • E.g. * シカゴへ行いけばバスで行いったらどうですか？ [If you go to Chicago, why don’t you go by bus?] This sentence is UNGRAMMATICAL because the predicate of Sentence 1 (i.e. 行いく) is an action. なら would be the preferable conditional form in this case.
  • In the structure Sentence 1 ば Sentence 2, Sentence 1 can be either a factual or counterfactual condition. Thus, a sentence such as 安やすければ買かいます。can be interpreted factually (i.e. “I’ll buy it if it’s cheap.”) or counterfactually (i.e. “I would buy it if it were cheap.”) depending on the context.
  • When Sentence 2 is in the past tense, the structure expresses a counterfactual past condition (i.e. “If X were the case“, If X had been the case“), or it expresses a past condition that occurred habitually. It does not express past conditions that occurred singularly.
    • E.g. Past Counterfactual Conditional: もっと安やすければ買かいました。[If it were cheaper, I would have bought it.]
    • E.g. Past Habitual Conditional: 雨あめが降ふればよく家いえで本ほんを読よんだものだ。[I often used to read books at home if it rained.]

Example Sentences:

その町まひは車くるまで行いけば三十分さんじゅうぷんでいける。[If you go by car, you can get to that town in 30 minutes.]

これは松本まつもとに聞きけばわかります。[If you ask Mr. Matsumoto, you’ll understand.]

WILD Examples:

At 1:27, listen for this line: 雲くもが踊おどればかぜが歌うたい出だす。[If the clouds dance, the wind will begin to sing.]
Listen for the following lyric at around 1:40: 真剣しんけんに頑張がんばれば幸しあわせになれる [If I try my best earnestly, then I will be able to find happiness.]
Listen for this line at 1:22: もしもこの僕ぼくが神様かみさまならば、全すべてを決きめてもいいなら、七日間なのかかんで　世界せかいを作つくるなようなまねはきっと僕ぼくはしないだろう [If I were a god and I could decide anything, I certainly don’t think I would copy something like making the world in 7 days]
Listen to this line at 0:45: こんど生うまれてくる時ときも、願ねがいは揃そろって同おなじくし、できればこんどはこしあんのたくさんついたあんだんご [They all have the same dream for the next time they are born, if possible they want to be covered in lots of sweet bean paste and become a sweet bean dango]

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