まだ Japanese Grammar Lesson

Grammar Type: Adverb

Essential Meaning: Still / Not yet

Construction: Adverb

Notes:

まだ conveys the idea that someone or something is still in the state that they were in some time ago. Depending on the polarity of the main verb, まだ can indicate that something is still the case (e.g. “I’m still hungry“) or that something is still not the case (e.g. “I still haven’t eaten“). You can think of まだ as meaning “Still” in the affirmative and “Not yet” in the negative.
- E.g. Affirmative: 木村きむらくんはまだ昼ひるごはんを食たべている。[Kimura-kun is still eating lunch.] In this example, the subject is still in the state of eating lunch.
- E.g. Negative: A: もう昼ひるごはんを食たべましたか。B: いいえ、まだです。[A: Did you already eat lunch? B: No, not yet.] In this example, Speaker B is not yet in the state of eating lunch (i.e. he or she is still in the state of having not eaten lunch).

The opposite of まだ is もう, which indicates that someone or something is no longer in the state that it was in some time ago (e.g. “I’ve already eaten“, “I’m no longer hungry“). You can think of もう as meaning “Already” in the affirmative and “No longer” in the negative.

Example Sentences:

木村きむらくんはまだ昼ひるごはんを食たべている。[Kimura-kun is still eating lunch.]

太田おおたさんはまだそのことを知しらない。[Ota-san still doesn’t know that.]

お酒さけはまだありますか。[Do you already have sake?]

私はまだ日本にほんへ行いったことがない。[I still haven’t been to Japan.]

A: もう昼ひるごはんを食たべましたか。B: いいえ、まだです。[A: Did you already eat lunch? B: No, not yet.]

WILD Examples:

At 1:39, listen to this line: まだ母かあさんは惚ぼけてはない、今日きょうも息子むすこは学校がっこうに行いかない [My mom is not senile yet, my son is once again not going to school today] At around 1:45, you can hear the line: まだローンは残のこってるし、俺おれまだ世界せかいを見みていない [I still have loans remaining (among other things), and on top of that I still haven’t seen the world.]

At 2:56, Mako Mori says this line: No! まだ方法ほうほうが残のこっている [No! There’s still a way!]

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