In Japanese, some sentence-ending particles have a feminine flavor, while others have a masculine flavor. The gender has to do with the speaker: feminine particles are usually used by feminine speakers or children, while the masculine ones are mostly used by masculine speakers.
For example:
Feminine: の transcribed no, もん transcribed mon, わ transcribed wa, かしら transcribed kashira
Masculine: な transcribed na, ぞ transcribed zo, かい transcribed kai, さ transcribed sa
Though women can use masculine particles and men can use feminine ones, when this happens there is usually a deeper implication that a native Japanese speaker would notice. Therefore, it’s important to know which particles are “gendered” before you start using them.
In this post, we’ll talk about when and how to use the particles listed above. Some of these particles may serve more than one function, and their gendered associations may be stronger in some uses than others. Let’s take a closer look to break down how you can use each of these in Japanese!
What are some feminine sentence-ending particles?
In Japanese the sentence-ending particles の transcribed no, わ transcribed wa, and かしら transcribed kashira are generally considered “feminine,” and are most often used by female speakers or sometimes children. However, these can still be used by men, especially in some particular uses. Let’s have a look!
の [no]
The sentence-ending particle の transcribed no can be used in a number of different circumstances:
When asking a question or giving an explanation:
Mom:どうして起きないの？➚Transcription: Dōshite okinai no?➚Translation: Why aren’t you getting up?Child:お腹が痛いの。➙Transcription: Onaka ga itai no. ➙Translation: (Because) my tummy hurts.To add emotional emphasis, often in particle combinations like ねの transcribed na no or のよ transcribed no yo:
ふーん、そんなに猫が好きなの。➘Transcription: Fūn, son’na ni neko ga suki na no.➘Translation: Hmmm, you love cats so much, I see!The speaker is impressed.そのコンサート、実は行けなかったのよ。➘Transcription: Sono konsāto, jitsu wa ikenakatta no yo.➘Translation: Actually, I couldn’t go to that concert, you know.The speaker is expressing disappointment or dissatisfaction.When making a prohibition, place it after the ない transcribed nai negated form. This use is most often used when mother figures give instructions to children.
おしゃべりしながら食べないの。➙Transcription: Oshaberi shinagarea tabenai no.➙Translation: Don’t talk and eat at the same time.
Keep in mind these grammar rules for using の transcribed no as a sentence-ending particle:
の transcribed no is usually used after the plain form, in casual conversations.
If の transcribed no, or a combination with の, is used at the end of a sentence concluding with a na-adjective + だ transcribed da or a noun + だ transcribed da, the だ transcribed da is dropped.
好きだ → 好きなのTranscription: sukida → suki na noTranslation: I like it → I like it
もん [mon]
The sentence-ender もん transcribed mon can be used instead of の transcribed no when children or sometimes female speakers give explanations.
This is often used with a slightly resentful or dissatisfied tone, as it’s mostly used to explain your actions to an elder on whom you’re dependent.
わ [wa]
The sentence-ending particle わ transcribed wa also sounds feminine. It is used with both polite and plain form with a rising intonation to add a light-hearted tone when making an assertion, expressing a decision, or expressing emotions.
- 私の方からお電話しますわ。➚Transcription: Watakushi no hō kara odenwa shimasu wa.➚Translation: I’ll call you.expressing a decision with a light-hearted tone
- まあ、すてきだわ。➚Transcription: Mā, suteki da wa.➚Translation: My, that’s lovely!expressing emotions with a light-hearted tone
わ is often used in a combination with ね transcribed ne or よ transcribed yo:
かしら [kashira]
かしら transcribed kashira works just like the particle かな transcribed kana. You can use it to express doubt or to express that you’re wondering about something, when talking to yourself or asking a question. But while かな transcribed kana can be used by both male and female speakers, かしら transcribed kashira is almost exclusively used by female speakers.
In everyday speech, most native speakers will choose to use かな transcribed kana instead though.
What are some masculine sentence-ending particles?
The sentence-ending particles な transcribed na, ぞ transcribed zo, and かい transcribed kai are masculine-sounding expressions and mainly used by male speakers. However, they can be used by female speakers who want to sound masculine or commanding. Let’s see how they work!
な [na]
The particle な transcribed na can be used to express prohibition, to issue commands, or to seek confirmation or agreement in casual conversations.
Prohibition:
To make a prohibition using な transcribed na, use it after the dictionary form of a verb.
- おい、家の中であばれるな。➙Transcription: Oi, ie no naka de abareru na. ➙Translation: Hey, don’t play rough in the house!a father ordering his children to behave
- 触るな！➙ やけどするぞ！Transcription: Sawaru na! ➙ Yakedo suru zo!Translation: Don’t touch it! You’d get burned!an urgent warning in emergency
- 危険。入るな。Transcription: Kiken. Hairu na.Translation: Danger. Don’t enter.a warning sign
This is a rough and strong way to make a prohibition, and is usually used:
among close friends and siblings
when authority figures like fathers give commands
in emergency situations or during a fight
on certain warning signs
Commands:
To form a command with な transcribed na, add な after the polite ます transcribed masu form of the verb. Commands like this sound brusque and are mostly used among close male friends. You’ll often here よ transcribed yo added to soften the tone.
もっと食べなよ。➙Transcription: Motto tabe na yo. ➙Translation: Eat more.Seeking confirmation or agreement:
To seek confirmation or agreement, add な transcribed na after the plain form. This often follows よ transcribed yo, as a “rough” or masculine alternative to ね transcribed ne or よね transcribed yo ne.
- よし。わかったな。➚Transcription: Yoshi. Wakatta na.➚Translation: Good. You understood it, right?seeking confirmation
- 今日は暑すぎるよな。➙Transcription: Kyō wa atsusugiru yo na.➙Translation: It’s too hot today, don’t you think?seeking agreement
ぞ [zo]
The sentence-ending particle ぞ transcribed zo is used by male speakers to express the speaker’s strong will/opinion or to add emphasis to a statement. It’s mainly used in casual conversations among peers, friends, and family members.
- 今日の試合は絶対勝つぞ。➙Transcription: Kyō no shiai wa zettai katsu zo.➙Translation: I’ll definitely win today’s game!expresses the speaker’s strong will
- もう９時だぞ。➙ そろそろ起きろ。Transcription: Mō ku ji da zo.➙ Sorosoro okiro.Translation: It’s 9:00 already! About time to get up.emphasis
Though ぞ is usually casual, you may sometimes find ぞ used in the polite style of speech in fictional works. This is typically role-specific language, used to mark the speech of a trusted elderly manservant offering advice to a young master.
かい [kai]
かい transcribed kai is an old-fashioned question marker, mostly used today by older male speakers when they are talking to younger people.
However, かい can also be used to express a strong opposition. In this case, the intonation doesn’t go up.
さ [sa]
The sentence-ender さ transcribed sa is primarily used when men make a comment or observation in a brusque manner.
- 四年も勉強すれば、これくらい読めて当然さ。➙Transcription: Yonen mo benkyō sureba, korekurai yomete tōzen sa.➙Translation: Of course I can read this after four years of study.
- どういうことさ。➙ きちんと説明しろよ。Transcription: Dōyū koto sa.➙ Kichin to setsumei shiro yo.Translation: What do you mean? Explain it to me properly.
This is not necessarily harsh or mean, though. For example, it can also be used to offer brusque consolation:
Are there other gendered sentence-enders?
Though most other sentence-enders aren’t as universally gendered as the ones above, several other Japanese sentence-ending particles can be gendered in certain uses. For example:
なあ transcribed nā with the plain form, is not particularly gendered. However, after the polite form it is mostly used older male speakers, as in:
今日も暑いですなあ。➘Transcription: Kyō mo atsui desu nā.➘Translation: It’s hot today too, isn’t it!よ transcribed yo itself is not gendered, but in some uses it might be considered masculine.
- きれいだよTranscription: kirei da yoTranslation: It’s beautiful, you know.masculine
- きれいよTranscription: kirei yoTranslation: It’s beautiful, you know.feminine
Check out our post on よ transcribed yo to learn more!
The question particle か transcribed kacreates “rough” or “masculine” questions when used in the plain style of speech.
- ラーメン、食べるか。➚Transcription: Rāmen, taberu ka. ➚Translation: Wanna eat ramen?
- ラーメン、食べる？➚Transcription: Rāmen, taberu? ➚Translation: Wanna eat ramen?sounds gentle
Check out our other posts on Japanese sentence-ending particles to learn more!
To sum up
In this post, we talked about some of the most strongly gendered sentence-ending particles in Japanese. Here are the primary uses of each for these particles:
Feminine sentence-enders:
の transcribed no→ requests and explanations
もん transcribed mon→ explanations
わ transcribed wa→ light-hearted assertion
かしら transcribed kashira→ doubting or wondering about something
Masculine sentence-enders:
な transcribed na→ prohibitions or commands
ぞ transcribed zo→ speaker’s strong will or opinion
かい transcribed kai→ asking a question (old-fashioned)
さ transcribed sa→ brusque tone
Keep in mind, though, that certain uses of other particles may also be gendered!
Ready to review what you’ve learned? Check out these gendered sentence-ender activities! Or, if you’re looking to compare them with other sentence-ending particles in Japanese, check out this master sheet of all the Japanese sentence-ending particles!
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