こと / もの Japanese Grammar Lesson
Grammar Type: Noun
Essential Meaning: Thing / Nominalizing noun
Construction:
- (Verb / い-Adjective) informal + こと
- E.g. 話すこと [Speaking / The fact that X speaks / The thing that X speaks]
- E.g. 食べること [Eating / The fact that X eats / The thing that X eats]
- E.g. 高いこと [The fact that X is expensive]
- な-Adjective Stem + [な / だった] + こと
- E.g. 静かなこと [The fact that X is quiet]
- As a noun: Noun + のこと
- E.g. 先生のこと [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. 黒いものが見えましたか。[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 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.
- 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 小説を書くこと [Writing a novel], the full phrase 小説を書く 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. 僕はクリスが泳ぐのを見ていた。[I was watching Chris swim.] This sentence involves the speaker personally watching Chris swim, so の is an appropriate nominalizer.
- E.g. お母さんがこんなに心配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するのを手伝った。[Jen helped Bill to do the laundry.] の indicates that the speaker feels empathy or closeness towards Bill and Jen.
- E.g. この町ではいい音楽を聞くことができる。[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. 見ることは信じることだ。[Seeing is believing.] こと is an appropriate choice here for the same reason as above.
Examples Sentences:
論文に書いたことを話してください。[Please talk about the things you wrote in your thesis.]
ブラウンさんは日本の大学のことをよく知っている。[Mr. Brown knows a lot of things about Japanese universities.]
大事なことはもうぜんぶ話しました。[I already said all of the important things.]
先生が言ったことを覚えていますか。[Do you remember the things that the teacher said?]
試験のことは忘れなさい。[Forget about the things regarding the exam.]
若い時にいい友達を作ることはとても大事だ。[Making good friends at a young age is very important.]
大学四年の時フランスに留学することを考えています。[I’m thinking about studying abroad during my fourth year of university.]
日本の文化がおもしろいことは分かるが、ユニークだとは思わない。[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で知っています。[I know the fact that Switzerland is beautiful from photos.]
あの人がいい人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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