The Secret to 30+ Japanese Prepositions That Will Elevate Your Conversations

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A preposition is a word or phrase that shows a relationship between words. There are over 100 prepositions in English, such as of, on, next to, with, in, and from. They’re used to indicate everything from direction to time. Japanese prepositions work similarly but in a different word order. In some ways, they’re even easier to learn!

Prepositions are important when you’re learning a new language. This guide will take you through what makes prepositions in Japanese different. We’ll introduce you to more than 30 preposition equivalents with example sentences to see them in the right context.

Are there prepositions in Japanese?

Yes and no. Japanese prepositions are actually known as postpositions, but for convenience, we’ll usually refer to them as prepositions. They perform the same function as prepositions (as they are both adpositions), and the only major difference between them is where the word is placed in relation to the related words it’s connecting. These linking words help support the other essential parts of speech in Japanese.

The “pre-” in preposition indicates that the preposition goes before the word it’s complementing. For example, consider this statement with prepositions in bold:

• With languages, you are at home everywhere.

“With” pairs with “languages,” while “at” pairs with “home” and in both cases, they come before the Japanese noun they’re connecting.

English also has a handful of postpositions. Compare this sentence with the previous example:

• I started studying Japanese three years ago.

Japanese only uses prepositions like in the example above. This makes direct translations to English difficult, and it also results in some overlap where one Japanese postposition can be translated into multiple English prepositions. It’s also important to note that the Japanese language doesn’t use articles like “the” and “a.” This means that you won’t need to add any additional words surrounding the postpositions and the words they’re connecting.

List of common Japanese prepositions

Many Japanese prepositions (or postpositions) are paired with one or more Japanese particles, so you may find some you recognize. To help you get started, here’s a complete list of the most essential Japanese prepositions for you to know.

List of Japanese particles that act as postpositions

Particles can also act as postpositions on their own. You’ll notice that many of them equate to more than one English preposition! Keep this list of particles in mind as we explore how to use them as prepositions.

The role of particle no in Japanese prepositions

The Japanese particle no (の) is seen in many prepositions, and it boils down to a rough translation of “of.” This is because the function of particle no in Japanese grammar is to assign possession or description to the word after it based on the word before it.

We see this happen in a couple of ways:

• Saki no namae（咲の名前）= Saki’s name (alternatively: name of Saki)
• Eigo no sensei（英語の先生）= English teacher (alternatively: teacher of English)

Depending on how it’s translated, the word “of” may or may not be present, but the grammatical connection remains.

Describing location and position

Prepositions in Japanese that refer to a location follow an easy formula using particle no (の): [item] no [location].

• Basutei no mae（バス停の前）= In front of the bus stop
• Kasa no shita（傘の下）= Below the umbrella (alternatively: Under the umbrella)
• Nihon no minami（日本の南）= South of Japan

How it’s translated varies because the English expressions are not as formulaic, but this can make it easier for you as you learn Japanese.

Here’s a chart of Japanese prepositions (or postpositions)  to describe location.

Whether you use “at, “in,” or “on” (or none of them!) to further describe the location will change depending on the context and verb used, but particles de (で) and ni (に) are most common.

Location using particle ni

Particle ni is used to describe location when the verb is “to exist”: aru (ある) for inanimate objects and iru (いる) for animate objects. There are also other verbs that require the use of ni, but they’re situational and less common.

• Hon wa kaban no naka ni arimasu.（本はかばんの中にあります。）= The book is inside of the bag. (Alternatively: The book is in the bag.)
• Tomodachi no tonari ni suwarimasu.（友だちのとなりに座ります。）= I’m sitting next to my friend.

Location using particle de

Unless the sentence’s verb requires the use of particle ni, particle de is used after the postposition to describe where an action is occurring. 

• Neko wa mado no mae de neteimasu.（猫は窓の前で寝てります。）= The cat is sleeping in front of the window.
• Gakkō no soto de machimashita.（学校の外で待ちました。）= I waited outside of the school.

Describing movement

To describe movement with prepositions in Japanese, either a verb phrase with an associated particle will be used (as seen in the first three rows of this chart) or a particle alone will suffice (as seen in the bottom four rows of this chart).

The postposition for “along” or “alongside” uses the Japanese phrase “~ni sotte,” using the te-form of the verb “to run along” (sou, 沿う).

• Kawa ni sotte sanpo shimashita.（川に沿って散歩しました。）= I took a walk along the river.

Using particles as postpositions is more straightforward, as they follow the normal rules for particle placement.

• Kōen kara eki made arukimashita.（公園から駅まで歩きました。）= I walked from the park to the station.
• Tomodachi e nimotsu o okurimashita.（友だちへ荷物を送りました。）= I sent a package to my friend.

Describing time

In terms of Japanese prepositions and where they’re located in a sentence, time and location work very similarly. You’ll notice that particle no is also essential here.

Using the same formula as location, describing a general or relative time is done by adding no after the event or time followed by the postposition (Japanese preposition).

• Bangohan no ato ni shukudai o shimasu.（晩ご飯の後に宿題をします。）= I’ll do my homework after dinner.
• Ichi jikan inai ni ie ni kaerimasu.（一時間以内に家に帰ります。）= I’ll go home within an hour.

Whether particle ni translates as “at,” “on,” or “in” depends on whether the sentence is describing a time or a date.

• Hachi ji ni hajimarimasu.（八時に始まります。）= It will start at 8:00.
• Tsuitachi ni hajimarimasu.（一日に始まります。）= It will start on the 1st.
• Gogatsu ni hajimarimasu.（五月に始まります。）= It will start in May.

Describing people and situations

Like movement, prepositions in Japanese about people and situations often use a verb phrase with te-form or a lone particle. You can see the similarities in this chart.

People, events, and topics can all be attached to these phrases!

• Haha ni totte, kazoku wa taisetsu da.（母にとって、家族は大切だ。）= For my mother, family is important. 
• Otōto wa seiseki ni tsuite nayandeiru.（弟は成績について悩んでいる。）= My little brother is worried about his grades.

Particles are also straightforward for these postpositions, although de in particular is worth noting because of its many translations.

• Tenki de shiai ga chūshi shimashita.（天気で試合が中止しました。）= The game was canceled due to weather.
• Kimu wa hashi de taberaremasu.（キムは箸で食べられます。）= Kim can eat with chopsticks.

Key takeaways about Japanese prepositions

Direct translations of Japanese postpositions to English prepositions can be complicated, but practice and immersion learning are the best ways to get accustomed to them. Start with particles to get a feel for how they fit in a sentence, and build up to the more complex prepositions from there!

• Rather than actual prepositions, Japanese has postpositions, which do the same thing in a different order.
• Some Japanese postpositions translate into several different English prepositions, which is why people refer to them as Japanese prepositions.
• Several Japanese particles also work as postpositions.