Ishikawa Entrance Japanese key terms

The person or thing that performs the action or holds the state described by a predicate; in Japanese it is often omitted when clear from context, and is marked by が or は.

The part of a sentence that states what the subject does or is, such as a verb, adjective, or noun plus copula; it comes at the end of a Japanese sentence.

A sentence segment that can stand alone as a minimal meaningful unit, formed by a content word plus any attached particles or auxiliary verbs; used when analyzing sentence structure.

An uninflected attaching word such as が, を, に, は, or も that shows the grammatical role of the preceding word or adds nuance; particles never stand alone as sentence elements.

An inflecting auxiliary attached after a verb or adjective to add meaning such as negation, tense, passive, or conjecture, for example ない, た, れる, らしい, and べし in classical texts.

The way a verb, adjective, or auxiliary changes its ending to fit what follows or to express tense, mood, and polarity; classical Japanese has six main conjugation forms including 未然形 and 連用形.

The classical conjugation form ending in -e (for example 書け, 見れ) that typically precedes ば to mean 'since' or 'when' and also appears in こそ…已然形 constructions.

A classical rule in which a particle such as ぞ, なむ, or や in the sentence causes the final predicate to take the 連体形, while こそ causes the 已然形; knowing this helps restore omitted meaning.

The conjugation form that modifies a noun, such as 書く in 書く人 or classical 書きける; in classical grammar it can also end a sentence under 係り結び.

Small marks in kanbun such as レ, 一, 二, and 上・下 that indicate the order in which Chinese characters must be read, telling the reader to go back and read a later character first.

Reading marks added to Chinese text, including 返り点 for reordering and 送り仮名 for Japanese endings, allowing a Japanese reader to render kanbun into understandable Japanese.

Classical Chinese writing as read in Japan using 訓点 and 書き下し; exam passages often come from historical or philosophical works and require reading order and meaning to be reconstructed.

The rendering of a kanbun passage into Japanese-style text that keeps the kanji but adds kana endings and reorders words according to the 返り点, used to show how the passage is read.

A Chinese character such as 而, 於, or 矣 that is kept in the original text but not read aloud in 書き下し, because its grammatical function is shown by particles or endings instead.

Japanese classical literary text, typically from the Heian through early modern period, written in historical kana usage and classical grammar; exam questions test vocabulary, grammar, and content understanding.

The traditional kana spelling used in classical texts, where けふ is read きょう and ゐ is read い; recognizing it is needed to read old passages aloud correctly.

Word forms and meanings used in classical Japanese that differ from modern usage, such as あはれ (deep emotion) or をかし (charming); a core part of classical reading questions.

Language that shows respect or politeness through honorific, humble, and polite forms; in classical texts, identifying who respects whom often reveals the relationships between characters.

Words such as これ, それ, あれ, and この that point to something mentioned earlier or nearby; tracking what they refer to is essential for reading comprehension questions.

Words such as しかし, つまり, and たとえば that show the logical relation between sentences, such as contrast, restatement, or example, and often mark where an author's main claim lies.

A block of sentences grouped around one idea, usually starting on a new indented line; identifying each paragraph's role helps locate topic sentences and the overall argument.

The central point or gist of a passage, which a reader must state in their own words; questions often ask for the main idea rather than a supporting detail.

Figurative language that describes one thing in terms of another, including 直喩 with ようだ or みたいだ and 隠喩 without such markers; recognizing it supports interpretation of literary texts.

A character's inner feelings or emotional state, which literary questions often ask readers to infer from actions, dialogue, and description rather than from direct statement.

The reading of a kanji based on its historical Chinese pronunciation, such as ガク for 学; it usually appears in compounds of two or more kanji.

The native Japanese reading assigned to a kanji, such as まなぶ for 学; it often appears with okurigana and usually stands alone or with Japanese endings.

The kana written after a kanji to show its inflection or reading, as in 書く or 新しい; correct use is tested in kanji writing and reading questions.

Words pronounced the same but written with different kanji and meanings, such as 機構 and 紀行; context and collocation decide which kanji is correct.

A fixed compound word made of two or more kanji, such as 学校 or 研究; knowing common compounds and their readings is central to the vocabulary section.

A set expression of four kanji, such as 一期一会 or 試行錯誤, whose meaning is often idiomatic rather than the sum of its parts; these appear in vocabulary and reading questions.

A fixed phrase whose meaning cannot be guessed from its individual words, such as 油を売る or 耳が痛い; these are commonly tested in vocabulary and usage questions.

A word with the opposite meaning to another, such as 抽象 and 具体; questions may ask you to choose the antonym that fits the context.

A word with a similar but not identical meaning to another, such as 理由 and 原因; choosing among them requires attention to nuance and collocation.

The set of honorific, humble, and polite forms used in formal writing and speech, such as いらっしゃる, 伺う, and です・ます; composition questions test correct and consistent use.

Writing a short original text on a given topic; exam tasks assess clear structure, appropriate vocabulary, correct kanji and kana, and a coherent beginning, middle, and end.

The listening section, in which spoken passages such as announcements, conversations, or short lectures are played and questions test main points, details, and speaker intent.

Taking brief notes while listening, recording key words, numbers, and the order of events; this supports answering questions about details that are not repeated.

The surrounding words, sentences, and situation that determine how a word or sentence should be understood; using context is essential for unknown vocabulary and ambiguous expressions.