How to tell them apart
が marks the subject performing an action or the thing being described, while を marks the direct object receiving the action. The key test is whether the noun is doing the verb or having the verb done to it: ステーキが美味しい describes steak, but 車を買った shows a car being bought. Swapping them is wrong because 飲み物を飲む needs を for the thing consumed, not が.
- が Use が when the noun is the one doing the action or the thing you are identifying.
- を Use を when the noun is the direct object that the verb acts upon.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| が ga | particle that indicates the subject of a sentence | N5 |
| を wo | Particle indicating the thing an action is done to | N5 |
が ga
particle that indicates the subject of a sentence
が marks the subject of a sentence, identifying who or what performs an action or has a described quality. It follows a noun or noun phrase directly, as in リンゴが or 足が, with no change to the noun itself. Learners often confuse it with は, but が tends to present new information or focus on the subject itself rather than the topic.
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木にリンゴが少しなっているでしょ？
There are a few apples on the tree, aren't there?
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あの人、すごい足が長いわよ。
That person has very long legs.
を wo
Particle indicating the thing an action is done to
The particle を marks the direct object, the person or thing that receives the action of a transitive verb, as in パンを食べる. It attaches directly to a noun or to a nominalized phrase like の or こと, and comes before the verb in the sentence. It is written を but pronounced o, and learners should check that the verb is transitive because intransitive verbs do not take an object with を.
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少年がとぶのを見てごらん。
Look at the boy jump!
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道を空けてください。
Make way, please.
が and を are both JLPT N5 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares them side by side on meanings, usage and example sentences, so you can tell them apart.