JLPT N2 · Upper Intermediate
JLPT N2 Grammar List
151 points
- を通して by way of; by means of an intermediary or medium
- に基づいて/基づく Founded on, grounded in
- をめぐって・めぐる about or concerning something
- に当たって/当たり at the time of a particular event or occasion
- 限り to the extent that; while a condition continues; as much as possible
- に過ぎない Nothing more than; only; merely
- に限って only in that case; particularly when
- に限らず not restricted to; goes beyond
- ざるを得ない Unable to avoid doing; forced to do
- わけにはいかない unable to bring oneself to do; no way one can do
- ものではない not something that should or can be done
- 反面 conversely; on the flip side; whereas
- 故に・ゆえに for the reason of; on account of; as a result
- からして Based on what can be seen or taken as a starting point
- からには Given that; seeing that something is the case
- だけに For the very reason that; to an even greater degree
- だけあって Just as one would expect, befitting the status of
- といったところだ Roughly, about that level; something like that
- に/ともなると Once a situation reaches that point; when it comes to; if
- かえって in a way that goes against what one would expect
- ようでは given that things appear this way, a bad outcome follows
- ようものなら In the event that, hypothetically
- ないことには cannot happen unless; without doing so, nothing follows
- 結果 Consequently; the outcome of something
- あげく(に) Ultimately, after everything is said and done
- 末(に) Following a lengthy process or considerable effort
- べく For the purpose of; with the aim of
- べからず・べからざる must not; should not (written style)
- に応じて・応じた In accordance with; in response to; accepting (an invitation)
- につき Per unit; concerning, regarding a matter
- ばこそ exactly because; for the very reason that
- かねる Unable to do; difficult to do
- 限りだ To an extreme degree
- だからと言って just because that's so, it doesn't follow that; that's no reason to
- どんなに(こと)か How very ~!; no matter how much ~
- 一方で(は) 他方で(は) Viewed from one side; viewed from the other side
- 上 Viewed from the standpoint of / with respect to
- からに至るまで spanning from ~ all the way to ~
- ことによる possibly; maybe; be due to the fact that
- まい will not do; probably will not happen
- 面 viewed from a particular aspect or standpoint
- なりなり turns into ~, then into ~, and so on
- に反して/反する in opposition to; running counter to
- において/おける In / at / on / during
- 点(で) with respect to a point or aspect; in that regard
- と言っても It is no exaggeration to say ~; one may well say ~
- というより(は) not so much ~ as; more accurately described as something else
- となると once the topic shifts to ~; in the case of ~
- 途端(に) the very instant something happens; right after doing something
- 得る (うる・える) to obtain or come by; can happen, is possible, -able
- であろう Likely; presumably (formal register)
- 逆に Contrarily; in reverse; as an alternative
- いかにも Indeed; truly; just as one would expect
- ましだ Superior in comparison; the more desirable option; would rather have
- または Used to link choices: one option or the other; either of two alternatives
- みせる to show determination to do; to certainly do (and prove it)
- もの(だ) That's just how things are; used to; naturally
- ならない Not permitted; ought not (something forbidden)
- ねばならない obligation to do something; formal way of saying must or have to
- に限らず [にかぎらず] not restricted to; goes beyond just
- には Used for a purpose; for the sake of; when judging something
- のこと on the subject of; with regard to; truthfully speaking
- のことだから given the nature of ~; as one would expect from ~
- さすが just as one would expect; exactly like; genuinely
- せめて at the very least; if only; minimally
- しかも On top of that; what's more; additionally
- したがって For that reason; in line with that; as a result
- そこで Thus; consequently; because of that
- ただ merely; nothing more than; yet; though (with a caveat)
- ということは That is to say; it means that; so
- 通り(に) In the same way as; exactly as; following or matching
- で Indicates a rate or amount for each unit; equivalent to 'for' or 'per'
- 限り confined to; to the utmost degree; for as long as (and no more)
- かろう Conjecture that something is likely so, via the adjective volitional
- 方をする Act or behave in a certain manner or style
- かと言うと if you ask whether; you'd assume so, but actually
- く Connects clauses, meaning and, using the adjective linking form
- もば provided even ~ at least; to the extent that
- もも Lists items emphatically: both ~ and ~; neither ~ nor ~
- の上では in terms of ~; judging from ~; on the surface of ~
- のはのことだ It is/was ~ that or when ~ (cleft construction)
- ぬ Negative meaning not; a classical, literary counterpart of ない
- おり humble way to say ている; is (doing), while
- Relative Clause A clause placed inside a sentence to modify a noun (intermediate level patterns)
- Rhetorical Question A question posed to assert something emphatically rather than to ask
- そうかと言って nevertheless; granted, but; having said that
- そこで Then; at that time; thereupon, as a narrative connector
- そこを However; despite that; even so
- 確かにが admittedly ~, though; true ~, but
- という風に in such a way that; indicating or implying that
- というのはことだ Saying that ~ is; it is a fact that ~
- とも at the very least; even supposing; no later than
- は emphatic particle stressing the topic, as in does/is/was
- は言うまでもなく goes without saying; not even mentioning; even less likely
- ちなみに Used to introduce something related in passing; incidentally; on that note
- だって Because (casual spoken conjunction)
- だって I heard that; apparently; even; too (casual spoken form)
- どちらかと言うと if forced to choose; rather; leaning more toward ~
- どうか used in requests or hopes; please; by some means
- 一応 For now; as a precaution; in a provisional way
- 以来 From a past point onward; continuously since then
- 一切ない Not in the least; by no means; not ever
- 一旦・いったん once (something happens); for a moment; on a temporary basis; for now
- 言ってみれば In other words; as a figure of speech; not literally
- 言わば In a manner of speaking; figuratively; kind of
- 自体 The thing itself; considered in and of itself; the very noun in question
- 仮に Assuming that; even supposing; on the condition that
- (っ)きり solely; by oneself; once done, remaining that way
- 加えて besides that; moreover; on top of this (variant A)
- 加えて moreover; on top of that; besides (variant B)
- もしくは Or; either ~ or (formal written)
- 並み Equal to; on a par with; as great as
- 何らかの A certain; some kind of; some sort of
- なんて exclamation of surprise or dismissal: what a ~!; how ~!
- なんて That; things like (casual quoting or brushing aside)
- 何とか By some means or other; succeed with difficulty; cope somehow
- 願う・願います Used to voice a hope or wish; also a polite way of asking someone to do something
- に向けて・に向けた In the direction of; aimed at; with a target in mind; in order to achieve
- それなりに・の To a reasonable degree; in a way that suits the situation
- 但し・ただし However; provided that; on the condition that
- 単に Just; simply; nothing more than; purely
- てばかりはいられない Cannot keep on doing; must not always be doing something
- てもても No matter how much ~, with repeated effort
- てはいられない Can't afford to; must not; can't just stay ~
- ともすると Likely to; tends to; apt to; if one is not careful
- との with; the counterpart of a noun marked by と
- は別として Excluding something from consideration; apart from; leaving it out
- 割に(は) Fairly; in relative terms; when judged against what one would expect
- やら Things such as; whether; and; or (with a nuance of uncertainty)
- やらやら What with one thing and another; this and that; various things
- ばかりに merely for the reason that
- ことから Due to; based on the fact that
- ことか exclaims how or what a; marks an embedded question
- もっとも Though that may be so; even so; it must be admitted
- ながら(も) While doing; while remaining in a state
- にほかならない Nothing other than; precisely because of that; the very (person/thing)
- 中を In the middle of; through; during; among
- につけ Each time something occurs; whenever; as
- を問わず Without regard to; not affected by
- に越したことはない the best possible choice; safest or most desirable option
- つつ in the midst of change; while; even though (formal)
- どころではない not at all ~; the opposite of ~ is true
- はたして truly; as one anticipated; actually; indeed
- にかけては in the area of; regarding; with respect to
- かと思うと the moment after; no sooner than; when realising
- ものの even though; despite the fact that
- 恐れがある there is a danger/risk that
- といった for example, such as
- のみならず not just... but in addition
- いわゆる what people call something; commonly known as
- だけのことはある It's unsurprising, or the effort or money paid off
Study guide
Turn the N2 grammar list into practice
Pay attention to register and restrictions. Two patterns with a similar translation can differ in whether they express a judgement, a factual result or a formal written relationship.
- Choose a pattern and read its meaning and usage before looking at the examples.
- Check how the pattern attaches to the preceding word. Compare the Japanese sentence with its translation, then explain the relationship in your own words.
- Try the grammar tests and return to patterns you confuse. Recalling a translation alone does not show that you can choose the pattern in context.
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