Japanese verb · u-verb · first needed at beginner level (A1)

泳ぐ

oyogu

to swim

A u-verb ending in ぐ: the te-form is (oyoide), with で instead of て. The place takes (de): (umi de oyogu).

Speed:

Present

現在形

Now, habits and the future. The plain form is for friends and family; polite ～ます is the default.

過去形

What happened, or what has happened. The plain form is for friends and family; polite ～ました is the default.

plain	泳いだoyoida
polite	泳ぎましたoyogimashita
plain negative	泳がなかったoyoganakatta
polite negative	泳ぎませんでしたoyogimasen deshita

て形

Joins actions (“and then”) and builds ～ています (doing now), ～てください (please do) and ～てもいいですか (may I).

te-form	泳いでoyoide
-te imasu (doing now)	泳いでいますoyoide imasu
-te kudasai (please do)	泳いでくださいoyoide kudasai
-te mo ii desu ka (may I)	泳いでもいいですかoyoide mo ii desu ka

意向形

Let's: the plain form between friends, ～ましょう in polite speech. ～ましょうか suggests (shall we?) or offers help (shall I?).

可能形

Can swim: (hyaku mētoru oyogemasu), I can swim a hundred metres.

使役形

Letting someone swim: (kodomo o pūru de oyogaseru), to let the children swim in the pool.

条件形

If: ～ば for general conditions, ～たら for “if” and “when, once”, ～なければ for “if not”.