You learned how to use the “short form” (普通形) for present and future tenses. In this lesson, you’ll learn its past tense counterpart, which is essential for talking about things that have already happened.
The Past Tense “Short Form”
Just like with the polite form, you can change the short form to its past tense. This is a crucial skill for casual conversations.
The Past Short Form in Informal Speech
Once you master these forms, you can use them to talk about past events in a casual way.
- Polite: 昨日、図書館に行きました。 (
Kinou, toshokan ni ikimashita.) - Casual: 昨日、図書館に行った。 (
Kinou, toshokan ni itta.) - I went to the library yesterday.
- Polite: 先週、テストは難しかったです。 (
Senshuu, tesuto wa muzukashikatta desu.) - Casual: 先週、テストは難しかった。 (
Senshuu, tesuto wa muzukashikatta.) - The test was difficult last week.
Giving Your Opinion About a Past Event: 「〜と思います」
This grammar pattern is used when you want to express a present opinion or a guess about something that happened in the past.
You might find this a little confusing because 「思います」 (omoimasu) is in the present tense, but it’s one of the common ways to talk about past events when you’re not entirely sure.
The structure is simple: you use the past tense short form of a verb, adjective, or noun, and then add 「と思います」.
- Example: メアリーさんは、昨日図書館に行ったと思います。 (
Mearii-san wa, kinou toshokan ni itta to omoimasu.)- Literal meaning: I think Mary went to the library yesterday.
- Explanation: You’re expressing your current belief or guess about a past action. You didn’t see her go, but based on the information you have now, you think she did.
- Example: 私は、田中さんは日本語が難しかったと思います。 (
Watashi wa, Tanaka-san wa nihongo ga muzukashikatta to omoimasu.)- Literal meaning: I think that Japanese was difficult for Tanaka-san.
- Explanation: You’re expressing your current opinion or assumption about Tanaka-san’s past experience. You don’t know for sure how they felt, but you’re guessing that it was difficult.
This pattern is a polite way to talk about the past when you are a bit uncertain about the facts. It is different from 「〜と思いました」 (to omoimashita), which expresses a thought you had in the past.
Quoting a Past Statement: 「〜と言っていました」
To quote something someone said about a past event, you use 「と言っていました」 (to itte imashita). This phrase is polite, even though the content of the quote is in the short form.
The formula is: Past Short Form + と言っていました。 (to itte imashita.)
- メアリーさんは、昨日図書館に行ったと言っていました。 (
Mearii-san wa, kinou toshokan ni itta to itteimashita.)Mary said that she went to the library yesterday. - 田中さんは、テストは難しかったと言っていました。 (
Tanaka-san wa, tesuto wa muzukashikatta to itteimashita.)Tanaka-san said that the test was difficult.
By combining the past tense short form with these polite endings, you can now discuss a wide range of past events in a natural and respectful way.