ます — Polite Verb Ending

Meaning & Usage

ます (masu) is the polite verb ending you attach to Japanese verbs. You meet it on day one — and rightly so. Polite speech is the default register in everyday Japanese: with strangers, coworkers, shopkeepers, teachers, and anyone outside your close circle, ます is what you use.

English signals politeness through extra words — "please," "could you," "would you mind." Japanese takes a different route: the verb ending itself carries the register. Replace the plain form with ます and the verb becomes polite. No extra words needed. It's a small change with real social weight.

ます covers both present and future time. Japanese has no separate future tense — time words and context handle that. So 「食たべます」 can mean "I eat" (habit) or "I will eat" (intention), depending on the sentence around it.

You'll use ます in both speech and writing. In conversation, it's the register for anyone you're not on familiar terms with. In writing, it shows up in emails, announcements, and formal documents. For learners, it's the safest default — it never sounds rude, though close friends might find it a little stiff.

Learning ます also unlocks the rest of polite conjugation: ません (negative), ました (past), and ませんでした (past negative). These four forms cover the backbone of polite Japanese verbs.

Structure & Formation

Attach ます to the verb stem — also called the ます-stem or pre-masu form. How you find the stem depends on the verb group.

Once you have the ます form, the rest of polite conjugation follows a consistent pattern:

• Present / Future affirmative: ～ます (e.g., 食たべます — I eat / I will eat)
• Present / Future negative: ～ません (e.g., 食たべません — I do not eat / I will not eat)
• Past affirmative: ～ました (e.g., 食たべました — I ate)
• Past negative: ～ませんでした (e.g., 食たべませんでした — I did not eat)

Example Sentences

Daily Routines

Going and Coming

Negative Sentences

Past Tense

Questions with ますか

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Using the dictionary form instead of ます in polite contexts

❌ 明日あした学校がっこうに行く。(Said to a teacher)

✅ 明日あした学校がっこうに行いきます。

The plain form (行く) sounds blunt — even rude — when used with a teacher, boss, or stranger. ます is not optional politeness; it's the expected register in formal situations. Keep the plain form for close friends, family, and your own inner monologue.

Mistake 2: Attaching ます directly to the dictionary form

❌ 食たべるます ✅ 食たべます

ます attaches to the verb stem, not the dictionary form. For Group 2 (ru-verbs) like 食べる, drop the る first. The stem is 食べ, so the result is 食べます. Skipping that step and writing 食べるます is one of the most common early errors.

Mistake 3: Incorrect stem for Group 1 verbs

❌ 書かくます ✅ 書かきます

Group 1 (u-verbs) shift their final vowel from the u-row to the i-row before ます. 書く ends in く (ku), so the stem becomes き (ki), giving 書きます. Attaching ます without this shift is wrong.

Mistake 4: Confusing します and きます for suru/kuru

❌ 来くるます / するます ✅ 来きます / します

する and くる are irregular — memorize them as-is. Their ます forms don't follow standard rules. Note the reading change in くる: the dictionary form reads くる, but the ます form 来ます reads きます.

Mistake 5: Forgetting か to form a question

❌ 行いきます？ (Written Japanese)

✅ 行いきますか。

In formal or written Japanese, questions end with か and a full stop (。), not a question mark. Rising intonation and ? work in casual speech, but in polite or written contexts, か is standard. A question mark reads as too casual or foreign.

Cultural Notes

ます connects directly to keigo (敬語 — honorific language), the system of respect woven into Japanese grammar. Japanese speakers are finely attuned to hierarchy: age, social role, and closeness all shape how you speak. The choice between plain form and ます is one of the earliest and most visible expressions of that awareness.

Use ます in Japan and it makes a real difference. Even a simple 「分わかりません」 (I don't understand) lands better than the blunt plain form — it signals you understand the unspoken rules of the room.

In service environments — restaurants, convenience stores, train stations — staff speak to customers in polite forms constantly. As a learner, these interactions are excellent listening practice. ます is everywhere once you know what to listen for.

Among close friends and family, plain form replaces ます. Dropping ます with someone marks a shift: the relationship has become more relaxed and familiar. In Japanese culture, that moment carries genuine social meaning.

Related Grammar Points

• てください — Please Do (Grammar N5)
• ましょう — Let's Do Something Together (Volitional Polite) (Grammar N5)
• か — Question Marker (Grammar N5)
• Na-Adjective (な形容詞) — Complete Usage Guide (Grammar N5)
• たことがある — Have Done Before (Grammar N5)
• ながら — While Doing Two Things at Once (Grammar N5)

JLPT Tips

ます forms appear throughout the N5 exam — reading, listening, and grammar sections alike. You won't be tested on ます in isolation. The exam tests your ability to recognize and produce its conjugated forms: ます, ません, ました, ませんでした, and ますか.

Know your irregulars cold. JLPT questions specifically probe whether you remember that くる becomes きます (not くます) and する becomes します (not するます). Both verbs appear constantly across all sections.

In the listening section, the gap between ます and ません can be hard to catch at natural speed. Build your ear with NHK Web Easy or beginner podcasts — focus deliberately on verb endings rather than just overall meaning.

On grammar fill-in-the-blank questions, read the context before choosing. Formal settings and conversations between strangers call for ます. Diary entries and casual friend dialogues may use plain form.

Learn each new N5 verb in both forms from the start — dictionary form and ます form together. Both appear throughout the exam, and drilling them as a pair from day one saves a lot of rework later.