What does "wa" in Japanese mean exactly?

Question

Hi, I was just wondering what "Wa" means exactly in the Japanese language.

I have been listening to Pimsleur's Japanese lessons on mp3, & the word Wa is first used in Lesson 1... BUT, they never tell me what it means or how it is to be used. They just slip it in there after "anata"- {you}.

I read in another question that "Wa" is similar to the word "Is" but can't be translated as "is" All the time. So then...What is it?! Can I get a full definition please? =[

Answer 1

The particle 'wa' is just that; a particle that marks the topic of a sentence. In Japanese, the word order can be switched to either Subject+Object+Verb OR Object+Subject+Verb, though the first is used most often. A particle's purpose is to mark the nouns (Subjects/Direct Objects/Objects of the Prepositions) and thereby convey the purpose of those nouns. For example, compare these two sentences:

Watashi wa hon wo yomimasu. (I read a book.)

Watashi no heya ni ikkou. (Let's go to my room.)

These are the four basic particles. Each serves a different purpose. The particle 'wa' signifies that 'watashi' (I) is the subject, whereas the particle 'wo' marks the word 'hon' (book) as the direct object. (A direct object receives the action of the verb.) Without them, one may be confused and we end up with a sentence like:

Watashi wo hon wa yomimasu.

This is not correct, and means 'the book reads me'. Not exactly the meaning the author intended, I'm sure.

In the second sentence, the particle 'no' shows possession. 'Watashi' (I) own the 'heya' (room). The second particle, 'ni' marks the place where something will happen. 'heya ni ikkou', therefore means 'Let's go to my room." The particle 'ni' can often be translated as the preposition 'to'.

Hope that was a good enough example for you. Just remember, the particle's purpose is to mark the subjects and objects so that the listener has an idea of what is happening in the sentence.

Answer 2

hmm, it is a particle...difficult to explain.

I'll give you link for japanese particles hang on.

http://www.thejapanesepage.com/grammar/p...

Answer 3

There is no full definition of wa because there is nothing like it in English.

Wa is a particle that marks the topic of a sentence. That is the best way of putting it. Some might translate it as "is" but that's not entirely correct and it varies by sentence.