📝 N4 Verb Conjugation Overview

JLPT N4 required verb forms — a visual reference page ✨

💭 Volitional Form（意向形）

Used to express intention: “let’s do / I will do”

🔀 Conditional Form（〜ば）

✅ Potential Form（可能形）

🚫 Imperative & Prohibitive (命令形 & 禁止形)

🔁 Passive & Causative (受身形 & 使役形)

N4 Verb Forms – Common Confusions

• Potential form and passive form may look similar (〜られる)
• Context decides the meaning
• Causative is often used with authority (parents, teachers, rules)

📊 N4 Verb Transformation Rules (Summary)

How verbs change across N4 forms — patterns you must remember

🧠 How Verb Forms Connect (N4 Logic)

From intention → ability → being affected → causing action

⚠️ Potential vs Passive（可能形 vs 被动形）

Potential / Ability

私は寿司が食べられる。

わたしは すしが たべられる。

I can eat sushi.

Focus: ability / possibility
Subject = the one who can do it

VS

Passive / Be done

寿司が猫に食べられた。

すしが ねこに たべられた。

The sushi was eaten by the cat.

Focus: what happened
に marks the doer (agent)

🕵️‍♀️ Detective Guide: How to tell them apart?

• Look for the particle に (By): If the sentence indicates who performed the action using [Person/Animal] に, it is almost certainly the Passive form.
• Look for the particle が: When expressing ability, the object particle 「を」 often changes to が (e.g., 寿司が食べられる). This is a strong indicator of the Potential form.
• Check the Subject: If the subject is an inanimate object (like a wallet being stolen), it is usually Passive. If it is a person discussing what they can do, it is the Potential form.

😭 Causative-Passive (使役受身形)

The "ultimate boss" of N4 forms. Used when you are forced to do something against your will.

Group I

書かされる

かかされる

was forced to write

Change to a-row + される
(Note: す ending verbs use させられる)

Group II

食べさせられる

たべさせられる

was forced to eat

Drop 「る」 + させられる

Group III

させられる

させられる

was forced to do

Irregular form

💡 Form breakdown (Why is it so long?)

• It's literally Causative (make someone do) + Passive (be done to).
• Example: 食べる (eat) ➜ 食べさせる (make someone eat) ➜ 食べさせられる (be made to eat).
• Group I Shortcut: Instead of the clunky 書かせられる, native speakers usually shorten it to 書かされる. (Exception: verbs ending in す like 話す must use 話させられる to avoid double "sa").

Continue Your N5 Study

N5 Nouns N5 Adjectives N5 Adverbs N5 Verbs N5 日期 date N5 數量詞 Counters N5 動詞變形

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