こと / もの

こと / もの Japanese Grammar Lesson

Grammar Type: Noun

Essential Meaning: Thing / Nominalizing noun

Construction: 

• (Verb / い-Adjective) informal + こと
  • E.g. 話はなすこと [Speaking / The fact that X speaks / The thing that X speaks]
  • E.g. 食たべること [Eating / The fact that X eats / The thing that X eats]
  • E.g. 高たかいこと [The fact that X is expensive]
• な-Adjective Stem + [な / だった] + こと
  • E.g. 静しずかなこと [The fact that X is quiet]
• As a noun: Noun + のこと
  • E.g. 先生せんせいのこと [Things about the teacher]
• As a nominalizer: Noun + [である / であった / だった] + こと
  • E.g. 先生せんせいであること [The fact that X is a teacher]

Notes:

• こと is a noun that means “Thing“. It can be used to refer to intangible things, or it can be used to nominalize verbs, adjectives, and sentences. The two usages are explained separately below.

• こと as a noun:
  • こと is an ordinary noun that is used to refer to intangible “things” (i.e things that are non-physical and cannot be literally experienced through the senses). Its counterpart is もの, which is used to refer to tangible things. A few example where こと may be used are “Don’t worry about the little things.“, “Do you remember the things that the teacher told us yesterday?“, or “There are many things that I like about you.” Just like the word “Thing” in English, こと is a vague and imprecise way of describing some intangible situation.
    • E.g. いいことを教おしえてあげよう。[I’ll tell you a good thing (i.e. I have something good to tell you).] This is a vague but perfectly acceptable sentence.
  • Be careful not to use こと to refer to tangible things. もの is used instead in such cases.
    • E.g. 黒くろいものが見みえましたか。[Were you able to see a black thing?]
    • E.g. おいしいものはありませんか。[Are there any delicious things?]

• こと as a nominalizer:
  • As a nominalizer, こと turns the full phrase or sentences that precedes it into a noun phrase. For example, with the expression 小説しょうせつを書かくこと [Writing a novel], the full phrase 小説しょうせつを書かく is nominalized and can now be used in any noun position (i.e. as the subject, direct object, indirect object, etc.).
  • の is also used as a nominalizer. The difference between the nominalizers こと and の is that の is more personal and implies that the speaker is personally involved in the action or state described by the sentence or somehow feels empathy towards the situation. On the other hand, こと comes across as more distant and describes the action or state from a more neutral and academic position. In short, when こと is replaced by の, the sentence becomes more personal and empathetic.
    • E.g. 僕ぼくはクリスが泳およぐのを見みていた。[I was watching Chris swim.] This sentence involves the speaker personally watching Chris swim, so の is an appropriate nominalizer.
    • E.g. お母かあさんがこんなに心配しんぱいしているのがわからないの。[Don’t you understand the fact that mom is worrying so much?] This is clearly an emotional statement; の is appropriate.
    • E.g. ジェーンはビルが洗濯せんたくするのを手伝てつだった。[Jen helped Bill to do the laundry.] の indicates that the speaker feels empathy or closeness towards Bill and Jen.
    • E.g. この町まちではいい音楽おんがくを聞きくことができる。[In this town, one can hear good music.] This a general statement about the music in the town. It does not express the speaker’s personal involvement, so こと is an appropriate choice of nominalizer.
    • E.g. 見みることは信しんじることだ。[Seeing is believing.] こと is an appropriate choice here for the same reason as above.

Examples Sentences:

論文ろんぶんに書かいたことを話はなしてください。[Please talk about the things you wrote in your thesis.]

ブラウンさんは日本にほんの大学だいがくのことをよく知しっている。[Mr. Brown knows a lot of things about Japanese universities.]

大事だいじなことはもうぜんぶ話はなしました。[I already said all of the important things.]

先生せんせいが言いったことを覚おぼえていますか。[Do you remember the things that the teacher said?]

試験しけんのことは忘わすれなさい。[Forget about the things regarding the exam.]

若わかい時ときにいい友達ともだちを作つくることはとても大事だいじだ。[Making good friends at a young age is very important.]

大学だいがく四年よねんの時ときフランスに留学りゅうがくすることを考かんがえています。[I’m thinking about studying abroad during my fourth year of university.]

日本にほんの文化ぶんかがおもしろいことは分わかるが、ユニークだとは思おもわない。[I know the fact that Japan’s culture is interesting, but I don’t think that it is unique.]

スイスがきれいなことは写真しゃしんで知しっています。[I know the fact that Switzerland is beautiful from photos.]

あの人ひとがいい人ひとであることはたしかです。[The fact that he is a good person is without question.]

WILD Examples

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