Japanese verb conjugation for beginners: ru-verbs, u-verbs, masu and te form

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Japanese verbs look intimidating at first, but they are remarkably regular. There are only three groups and almost no exceptions to learn. Once you can sort a verb into its group, you can build the polite form, the te form, the past and the negative from the dictionary form alone. This guide covers exactly that, with examples.

The three groups

Ru-verbs (ichidan, group 2): dictionary form ends in -iru or -eru, and you conjugate by dropping the final る. Examples: 食べる taberu (eat), 見る miru (see), 起きる okiru (get up), 寝る neru (sleep).
U-verbs (godan, group 1): everything else. The final u sound changes. Examples: 書く kaku (write), 飲む nomu (drink), 話す hanasu (speak), 待つ matsu (wait), 買う kau (buy).
Irregular verbs: する suru (do) and 来る kuru (come). That is essentially the whole list, though suru appears in hundreds of compounds such as 勉強する benkyō suru (study).

The trap: u-verbs that look like ru-verbs

Some verbs end in -iru or -eru but are u-verbs. You simply have to learn them. Common ones:

帰る kaeru (go home), 入る hairu (enter), 走る hashiru (run)
知る shiru (know), 切る kiru (cut), 要る iru (need)

Dictionaries and most apps mark the group, so check when you learn a new verb.

The masu form (polite)

This is the form you will use most as a beginner, with strangers, shop staff and anyone you do not know well.

Ru-verbs: drop る, add ます. 食べる → 食べます tabemasu.
U-verbs: change the final u sound to i, add ます. 書く → 書きます kakimasu, 飲む → 飲みます nomimasu, 話す → 話します hanashimasu, 待つ → 待ちます machimasu, 買う → 買います kaimasu.
Irregular: する → します shimasu, 来る → 来ます kimasu.

From there:

Past: ます → ました (食べました, I ate)
Negative: ます → ません (食べません, I do not eat)
Past negative: ません + でした (食べませんでした, I did not eat)
Let's: ます → ましょう (食べましょう, let's eat)

The te form

The te form links actions together, makes requests (〜てください, please do) and builds the progressive (〜ている, doing). Ru-verbs simply drop る and add て: 食べる → 食べて. U-verbs follow a pattern based on the last syllable:

う, つ, る → って: 買う → 買って, 待つ → 待って, 帰る → 帰って
む, ぶ, ぬ → んで: 飲む → 飲んで, 遊ぶ → 遊んで, 死ぬ → 死んで
く → いて: 書く → 書いて
ぐ → いで: 泳ぐ → 泳いで
す → して: 話す → 話して
One exception: 行く iku (go) → 行って itte, not 行いて.
Irregular: する → して, 来る → 来て kite.

Many learners memorise the pattern as a song; search for "te form song" and pick one you like.

The plain past (ta form)

Take the te form and change て to た, or で to だ: 食べて → 食べた, 飲んで → 飲んだ, 行って → 行った. This is the casual past, used with friends and inside longer sentences.

The plain negative (nai form)

Ru-verbs: drop る, add ない. 食べる → 食べない.
U-verbs: change the final u sound to a, add ない. 書く → 書かない, 飲む → 飲まない. Verbs ending in う become わ: 買う → 買わない.
Irregular: する → しない, 来る → 来ない konai.
One exception: ある (there is) → ない.
Past negative: ない → なかった. 食べなかった (did not eat).

A worked example

Take 飲む nomu (drink), a u-verb:

Polite: 飲みます / 飲みました / 飲みません / 飲みませんでした
Te form: 飲んで (飲んでください, please drink)
Plain past: 飲んだ
Plain negative: 飲まない / 飲まなかった

How to practise

Learn every new verb with its group.
Drill with a conjugation app or flashcards that show the dictionary form and ask for a target form.
Say short sentences out loud about your own day: 今日はコーヒーを飲みました.

Our guides to Japanese sentence structure and keigo show where these forms fit in full sentences. Which conjugation keeps tripping you up? Ask in the comments.