た-form: not just for the past

13^th July 2015 · 1 min read

When studying Japanese you often hear た used in some strange ways! When somebody finds something they are looking for, they don’t say ある, they say あった！ And have you ever been told ちょっと待った！ rather than ちょっと待って！ ?

It turns out there are about 9 different uses for the ta-form. I was surprised. How many do you know?

1. a past action or state (the most familiar use)

   母に手紙を書いた

   I wrote a letter to my mother.

2. repeated habitual actions in the past

   あのころは、よく運動した

   I used to exercise a lot in those days.

3. a past event occurring under specific circumstances (!)

   帰るとすぐに手を洗った

   I would wash my hands immediately after I got home.

4. a past situation which has lasted until present time

   大きくなったね！

   You’ve grown, haven’t you!

5. the discovery of a new state or situation

   あ、そこにいたの！

   Oh, there you are!

6. recall of a future event

   あ、あした試験があった！

   Oh, I have an exam tomorrow!

7. request for a listener’s confirmation of a fact

   あなたはどなたでしたか？

   Who are you?

8. advanced proclamation of the future realisation of an action or situation

   よし、買った！

   Alright, I’ll buy it!

9. a command (pretty rude) expressing urgency

   やめた！やめた！

   Stop it!!

So don’t be surprised if you see た used somewhere strange. After a while living in Japan, I found myself saying あった！too!