JLPT N3 — Grammar Patterns flashcards
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Sixty grammar points commonly listed for N3 — purpose and cause, the わけ family, concession, さえ and other emphasis, によって and relation words, time patterns, tendencies, hearsay, regret and wishes — each with meaning, connection form and an original example.
Learn deck · part of JLPT N3 · written against: Every word of the JLPT N3 vocabulary list compiled by Jonathan Waller (tanos.co.uk, CC BY; no official list since 2010) and every N3 kanji of kanji-data not already in the N5 and N4 decks (352 of its 367, with 泣 and 暖: 354 kanji), with grammar patterns and in-context cloze; sentences use N5–N3 kanji, pitch accent from Kanjium. Updated 2026-10-10.
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To get a seat on the morning train, I always get on at the stop before mine — how does 〜ために express purpose, and what must be true of the two clauses?dictionary form / noun + の + ために — Marks a goal the subject deliberately works toward. Both clauses share the same subject, and the verb before ために is a deliberate action.Purpose & Cause
Example: 朝の電車で座るために、いつも一つ前の駅から乗ります。 — To get a seat on the morning train, I always get on at the stop before mine.
Watch out: With potential or uncontrollable verbs (できる, わかる, 見える) use 〜ように instead; なる takes ために when becoming something is the goal (医者になるために). -
Important things should be said face to face, not by email — which ending states what one ought to do as a matter of principle, and what happens to する?dictionary form + べきだ — States a duty or what is right; the negative べきではない means should not. する can become すべき or するべき.Advice & Obligation
Example: 大事なことは、メールではなく会って話すべきです。 — Important things should be said face to face, not by email.
Watch out: Stronger than 〜ほうがいい; it sounds pushy as advice to a superior. -
They spent ten whole years living in Japan? No wonder their Japanese is good — which ending draws a natural conclusion from the facts?plain form + わけだJudgement & Certainty
States the logical conclusion or explanation: so that is why / no wonder. な-adjectives and nouns take な (or である) before わけ.
Example: 十年も日本に住んでいたのか。日本語が上手なわけだ。 — They spent ten whole years living in Japan? No wonder their Japanese is so good. -
I'm so busy that I can't even find time for lunch — which particle means even, picking out an extreme case?noun (+ particle) + さえ — Picks out an extreme example to imply that everything else is true too. It replaces が and を, and a subject often takes でさえ (子どもでさえ); other particles stay (子どもにさえ).Emphasis & Limits
Example: 忙しくて、昼ご飯を食べる時間さえありません。 — I'm so busy that I can't even find time for lunch. -
I am researching Japanese history — which expression marks the topic you speak, think or write about?noun + について — Means about, concerning; it goes with verbs such as 話す, 調べる, 考える and 書く. Before a noun it becomes についての.Topic & Relation
Example: 日本の歴史について調べています。 — I'm researching Japanese history. -
When I asked the teacher, I found out the test was next week — what does た-form + ところ mean when a discovery follows?た-form + ところ — Means when I did X, (I found that) Y: the second clause reports a result or discovery, not something you did on purpose.Time & Sequence
Example: 先生に聞いたところ、テストは来週だと分かりました。 — When I asked the teacher, I found out the test was next week.
Watch out: Not the same as 〜たところだ (have just done). -
The stuff in my brother's room just keeps piling up — which ending says a change keeps going in one direction?dictionary form + 一方だ — Means keeps on (getting more and more); it goes with change verbs such as 増える, 上がる and 悪くなる, often for unwelcome trends. 一方 is read いっぽう.Tendency & Change
Example: 弟は何でも買ってくるので、部屋の物は増える一方です。 — My younger brother keeps buying all sorts of things, so the stuff in his room just keeps piling up. -
I should have studied more — which pattern expresses regret about something you did not do?ば-form + よかった — Means I should have / I wish I had; のに at the end adds stronger regret. For something you did and regret, use the negative: 言わなければよかった.Wishes & Regret
Example: もっと勉強すればよかった。 — I should have studied more. -
What time will the company president be coming? — how can the passive form serve as a light honorific?passive form (〜れる / 〜られる) as honorific — The passive form can show respect for a superior's actions; it is lighter and less formal than お〜になる or special honorific verbs.Honorific & Humble
Example: 社長は何時に来られますか。 — What time will the president be coming?
Watch out: For ru-verbs and くる the honorific looks like the potential form, so context decides. -
I washed my face with my glasses still on — which pattern means leaving something in an unchanged state?た-form / ない-form / noun + の / adjective + まま — Means as it is, still in the state of: the state stays unchanged while something else happens. な-adjectives take な.State & Manner
Example: めがねをかけたまま、顔を洗ってしまいました。 — I washed my face with my glasses still on.
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About these cards
Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- Grammar points follow the patterns commonly listed for JLPT N3 (no official list exists since 2010) and exclude points covered in the JLPT N5 and N4 grammar decks; rules checked against Tae Kim's Guide to Japanese Grammar (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0), JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Kotobank (デジタル大辞泉, 精選版 日本国語大辞典). Reference only; all example sentences are original.
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