Japanese Lesson 23 – School Subjects · N5

📋 Expression Reference — School Subjects

Key phrases across formality levels. Press ▶ to hear any expression.

STANDARD — ていねい (TEINEI)

Expression	Romaji	Typical Response	Context
すうがくがとくいです。	Suugaku ga tokui desu.	いいですね！ Ii desu ne!	Saying you're good at maths
えいごがにがてです。	Eigo ga nigate desu.	がんばってください。 Ganbatte kudasai.	Admitting weakness in a subject
あしたのじゅぎょうはなんですか？	Ashita no jugyou wa nan desu ka?	すうがくとりかです。 Suugaku to rika desu.	Asking about tomorrow's classes
おんがくがいちばんすきなかもくです。	Ongaku ga ichiban sukina kamoku desu.	わたしもです！ Watashi mo desu!	Stating your favourite subject

CASUAL — くだけた (KUDAKETA)

Expression	Romaji	Typical Response	Context
すうがく、むずかしくない？	Suugaku, muzukashiku nai?	うん、にがてだよ。 Un, nigate da yo.	Casual "Isn't maths hard?"
しゅくだいおわった？	Shukudai owatta?	まだだよ。 Mada da yo.	"Finished your homework?" — casual past tense
しけん、どうだった？	Shiken, dou datta?	けっこうよかったよ！ Kekkou yokatta yo!	"How was the test?" — casual past

🗣 Mini Dialogues

Three scenes at different formality levels. Press ▶ to hear each line.

A — STANDARD · Teacher Asking Students

せんせい

いちばんすきなかもくはなんですか？

Ichiban sukina kamoku wa nan desu ka?

What is your favourite subject?

いちばんすきな [NOUN] はなんですか？

ichiban sukina [noun] wa nan desu ka?

most liked [thing] — what is it?

→ "What is your favourite [thing]?"

ゆき

おんがくがいちばんすきです。でもすうがくはにがてです。

Ongaku ga ichiban suki desu. Demo suugaku wa nigate desu.

I like music the most. But I'm not good at maths.

せんせい

そうですか。すうがくをがんばってください。

Sou desu ka. Suugaku wo ganbatte kudasai.

I see. Please do your best with maths.

B — STANDARD · Comparing Timetables

けんた

きょうのごごはなんのじゅぎょうがありますか？

Kyou no gogo wa nan no jugyou ga arimasu ka?

What classes do you have this afternoon?

[TIME] はなんのじゅぎょうがありますか？

[time] wa nan no jugyou ga arimasu ka?

[when] — what class is there?

→ "What class do you have at [time]?"

みさき

りかとたいいくです。りかのしけんがあります。

Rika to taiiku desu. Rika no shiken ga arimasu.

Science and PE. There's a science test.

[SUBJECT] のしけんがあります。

[subject] no shiken ga arimasu.

[subject] 's test — there is

→ "There's a [subject] test."

けんた

たいへんですね。がんばってください。

Taihen desu ne. Ganbatte kudasai.

That's tough. Good luck!

C — CASUAL · Friends After School

そうた

ああ、しゅくだいおおすぎ！すうがくきらい！

Aa, shukudai oosugi! Suugaku kirai!

Ugh, too much homework! I hate maths!

あおい

えいごのしけん、けっこうよかったよ！

Eigo no shiken, kekkou yokatta yo!

My English test went pretty well!

[SUBJECT] のしけん、けっこうよかったよ！

[subject] no shiken, kekkou yokatta yo!

→ "My [subject] test went pretty well!"

そうた

いいなあ。ぼくもえいごをがんばってるんだけど。

Ii naa. Boku mo eigo wo ganbatterun da kedo.

Lucky you. I'm trying hard at English too, though.

📋 Key Patterns & Cheatsheet ▼

Expressing ability — とくい vs にがて

🟢 とくい (good at)

すうがくがとくいです。

Suugaku ga tokui desu.

I'm good at maths.

とくい = strong point. Use が (not は) to mark the subject you're good at.

🔴 にがて (not good at)

えいごがにがてです。

Eigo ga nigate desu.

I'm not good at English.

にがて = weak point. Softer than きらい — not "I hate it," just "I struggle with it."

Favourite subject — いちばんすきなかもく

STANDARD

[SUBJECT] がいちばんすきなかもくです。

[subject] ga ichiban sukina kamoku desu.

→ "[Subject] is my favourite subject."

CASUAL

[SUBJECT] がいちばんすき！

[subject] ga ichiban suki!

→ "I like [subject] the most!" — drop かもくです entirely.

Subject difficulty — むずかしい vs かんたん

🟢 STANDARD

りかはむずかしいです。

Rika wa muzukashii desu.

Science is difficult.

Use は (not が) — you are commenting on a known topic.

🟡 CASUAL

りか、むずかしくない？

Rika, muzukashiku nai?

Isn't science hard?

Negative question form = seeking agreement. Very natural among friends.

Talking about tests and effort

STANDARD

[SUBJECT] のしけんがあります。

[subject] no shiken ga arimasu.

→ "There's a [subject] test."

CASUAL

[SUBJECT] をがんばってるんだけど。

[subject] wo ganbatterun da kedo.

→ "I'm working hard at [subject], though…"

A — Flashcards

Click a card to flip it. Use ▶ to hear the Japanese.

tap to flip

1 / 10

B — Listen & Choose the Meaning

Press ▶ to hear each phrase, then choose the correct English meaning.

C — Choose the Right Response

Listen to the question, then choose the most natural reply.

D — Listen & Write in Romaji

Press ▶ to hear each phrase, then type what you heard in romaji. Japanese letters are not needed.

💡 Tip: Long vowels → double the vowel (おう = ou / oo). Double consonants → write them twice (きって = kitte).

E — Shadowing Practice

Press ▶ to hear each line, say it aloud, then mark it as practised.

0 of 9 lines practised

📖 Grammar Notes ▼

とくい / にがて + です — expressing ability

とくい (tokui) means "strong point / good at." にがて (nigate) means "weak point / not good at." These are な-adjectives, used with です in polite speech or だ in casual speech.

• すうがくがとくいです = I'm good at maths
• えいごがにがてです = I'm not good at English

Use が (not は) to mark the subject of ability. にがて is softer than きらい — it means "I struggle" rather than "I hate it."

[SUBJECT] がとくいです / にがてです。

[subject] ga tokui desu / nigate desu.

→ "I'm good at / not good at [subject]."

りかがとくいです。

Rika ga tokui desu.

I'm good at science.

School subject names

Core N5 school subjects:

  • すうがく = maths   • えいご = English   • にほんご = Japanese
  • りか = science   • しゃかい = social studies   • こくご = national language (Japanese class)
  • たいいく = PE / physical education   • おんがく = music   • びじゅつ = art
  • れきし = history

These are nouns — combine them with particles like が, は, の, を as needed.

[SUBJECT NAME] がすきです。

[subject] ga suki desu.

→ "I like [subject]."

たいいくがすきです。

Taiiku ga suki desu.

I like PE.

～のじゅぎょう — "[subject] class"

の connects the subject name to じゅぎょう (class/lesson). This is the standard way to say "X class" or "X lesson."

• すうがくのじゅぎょう = maths class
• えいごのじゅぎょう = English class

You can also ask about classes with: なんのじゅぎょうがありますか？ = "What class is there?"

[SUBJECT] のじゅぎょうがあります。

[subject] no jugyou ga arimasu.

→ "I have [subject] class." (lit. "[subject]'s class exists")

きょうのごごはりかのじゅぎょうがあります。

Kyou no gogo wa rika no jugyou ga arimasu.

This afternoon there's science class.

むずかしい / かんたん — difficulty adjectives

むずかしい (muzukashii) = difficult, かんたん (kantan) = easy/simple.

• むずかしい is an い-adjective → むずかしいです (polite) / むずかしくない (negative)
• かんたん is a な-adjective → かんたんです (polite) / かんたんじゃない (negative)

Use は (not が) when commenting on a known topic: すうがくはむずかしいです。

[SUBJECT] はむずかしいです / かんたんです。

[subject] wa muzukashii desu / kantan desu.

→ "[Subject] is hard / easy."

おんがくはかんたんです。

Ongaku wa kantan desu.

Music is easy.

～をがんばる — working hard at something

がんばる (ganbaru) means "to do one's best / work hard." Mark the target with を.

  • がんばります = I will work hard (polite)
  • がんばっています = I am working hard (polite, ongoing)
  • がんばってるんだけど = I'm trying hard, but… (casual)
  • がんばってください = Please do your best (encouragement)

[SUBJECT] をがんばっています。

[subject] wo ganbatte imasu.

→ "I'm working hard at [subject]."

えいごをがんばっています。

Eigo wo ganbatte imasu.

I'm working hard at English.

～のしけん — "[subject] test"

しけん (shiken) = test/exam. Connect with の to specify which subject's test.

• りかのしけん = science test
• えいごのしけん = English test

To say "there is a test": ～のしけんがあります。
To ask how it went (casual): しけん、どうだった？

[SUBJECT] のしけんがあります。

[subject] no shiken ga arimasu.

→ "There's a [subject] test."

あしたのすうがくのしけんがあります。

Ashita no suugaku no shiken ga arimasu.

There's a maths test tomorrow.

いちばん + すきな / にがてな + かもく — superlative subjects

いちばん (ichiban) = "number one / most." Place it before a な-adjective to create a superlative.

• いちばんすきなかもく = favourite subject
• いちばんにがてなかもく = weakest subject

Note: すき and にがて are な-adjectives, so when modifying a noun they become すきな and にがてな.

いちばん [ADJ]なかもくはなんですか？

ichiban [adj]na kamoku wa nan desu ka?

→ "What is your most [adj] subject?"

いちばんにがてなかもくはすうがくです。

Ichiban nigatena kamoku wa suugaku desu.

My weakest subject is maths.

📚 Key Vocabulary ▼

Japanese	Romaji	Meaning
すうがく	suugaku	maths
えいご	eigo	English
にほんご	nihongo	Japanese (language)
りか	rika	science
しゃかい	shakai	social studies
たいいく	taiiku	PE / physical education
おんがく	ongaku	music
びじゅつ	bijutsu	art
こくご	kokugo	national language (Japanese class)
れきし	rekishi	history
しゅくだい	shukudai	homework
しけん	shiken	test / exam
せいせき	seiseki	grades / results
じゅぎょう	jugyou	class / lesson
かもく	kamoku	subject (school)

📋 Expression Reference — School Subjects

🗣 Mini Dialogues

A — Flashcards

B — Listen & Choose the Meaning

C — Choose the Right Response

D — Listen & Write in Romaji

E — Shadowing Practice

とくい / にがて + です — expressing ability

School subject names

～の じゅぎょう — "[subject] class"

むずかしい / かんたん — difficulty adjectives

～を がんばる — working hard at something

～の しけん — "[subject] test"

いちばん + すきな / にがてな + かもく — superlative subjects

～のじゅぎょう — "[subject] class"

～をがんばる — working hard at something

～のしけん — "[subject] test"