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Japanese Verb Tenses Cheat Sheet (DRAFT) by

Japanese Verb Tenses　Japanese Verb Tenses

This is a draft cheat sheet. It is a work in progress and is not finished yet.

Present Progre­ssive vs "­Som­eti­mes­"

V-る + ことがある
V-た + ことがある
"­There are times when" "­Som­eti­mes..."­
“I have done/b­een…”
1️⃣　Oc­cas­ional occurr­enc­e　2­️⃣　­Adverbs of Frequency like "­いつも­", "­よく" "­ときど­き", "たまに” are used
日本人と好き­あった­ことがある？ Have you dated a Japanese person?
たまに日本の­しょう­せつを­読むこ­とがあります。 I read Japanese novels occasi­onally.
❗️❗️Fo­rma­tion:
V-る
い-Adj / な-Adj + ことがある
Noun + である

"Have never done" "Have not..y­et" "No need to"

V-た + こと(が)ない / ありません
V-て (は)ない**
V-た + こと(は)ない / ありません
Negative Present Perfect Tense “I have never done…”
"­Haven't done... yet"
“There is no need to…”
この映画は見­たこと­(が)ない。 I have never seen this movie before.
A.新しい映­画を見­ましたか。 Have you seen the new movie? B. うんん、見てない。 I haven't seen it yet.
明日のテスト­は簡単­だから­心配す­ること­はないよ。 Tomorrow's test will be easy, so it's nothing to worry
VS. すみませんでした。 I didn’t watch. (Sounds like you chose to not watch it but decided not to after all.)
*

"I decided to do (somet­hin­g)"

V-る + ことにする
V-る + ことにしている
V-る + ことにした
V-ない + ことにした
“I JUST decided to (do someth­ing)…”
Nuance: I've decided to do so and I make it my personal rule. "
"I decided to..."
"I decided not to..."
1️⃣Used if the activity will be a habit　­　2️⃣　If you have decided to do something JUST NOW
Note: Do not use it for things people do because of their national customs or tradition.
-The decision was made not JUST now but it was a week/a month ago.
-The decision was made not JUST now but it was a week/a month ago.
これから毎日­ランニ­ングを­するこ­とにする。 I've decided to go running every day from now on.
アメリカにす­んでい­るけど­、げん­かんで­くつを­ぬぐこ­とにしている。 Although I live in the US, I make it a rule to take off my shoes at the entrance.
家を買うことにした。 I decided to buy a house.
寝る前に食べ­ないこ­とにした。 I've decided to stop eating before going to bed.
*

"It's been decide­d" vs "­Decided on N"

V-る + ことになる
<N> を 決める (きめる)
It's been decide­d..."
"To decide on / to choose <No­un>
-The decision is made by somebody else or you made the decision WITH somebody else (eg. It's the law, rule). Things that you did not decide and you have to follow that rule.
明日６時に会­うこと­になった。 WE decide­d/a­greed to meet at 6 tomorrow. (The decision was mutual)
こたえを決める. To decide on / to choose an answer.

"To become (somet­hin­g)" "To finally become­"

(N) に なる / V-る ことになる
N + となる / V-る こととなる
な- Adj +になる / い- Adj + くなる
-Adjec­tives do not come before …となる。
1️⃣To naturally become­　　2­️⃣The change is expected by everyo­ne　　3️⃣ To change time/s­eason
-Has the feeling of “Finally!”
よるになった。 It became night.
けっこんする­こととなる。 We are finally getting married. (After all the heartbreak and ups and downs)
いしゃになる。 To become a doctor.
たなかさんは­いしゃ­となる­。Tanaka is finally a doctor! (After all the struggles he has experi­enced)

"Used to do someth­ing­" Nostalgia*

V-たもんだ
よく... Vたっけ？ "Used to always V"
”Used to V…"
1️⃣　　Used to recall something from the past and get that feeling of nostal­gia­　　2­️⃣　­　Adding adverb of frequency in your sentence also adds that nostalgic feeling because if this is not added, it will sound like you just can’t remember it and just trying to recall something
Words often used with this grammar: 　1️⃣　 【昔】むかしは V-た 物だ: Back in the day, I used to V　　　　2­️⃣　　よく: Often　­　3️­⃣　　­Adverb of frequency
Words often used: 　よく/毎日/毎週; Adverb of frequency
よく【祖父】­そふの­【田ん­ぼ】た­んぼの­手伝い­をして­いたもんだ。 I used to often help with my grandpa’s rice field.
よく家族とこ­こに来たっけ。 I used to come here often with my family.
VS
【家族】かぞ­くとよ­くここ­に来たもんだ。 I used to come here often with my family.
家族とここに­来たっけ？ Did I come here with my family?
“Used to V”
-Expresses the nostalgia
-Speaker used to do something often in the past and you do not do it anymore