N5 grammar

〜です

desu

Saying what something is

Formationnoun + です

です links a noun to what it is, politely, and covers the work the English verb to be does. It carries the tense and the politeness for the whole sentence, so nothing else has to change. Casual Japanese drops it far more often than beginners expect.

Examples

〜です is marked in each sentence. Tap any word for its dictionary entry.

クリスマスは１２月じゅうにがつ２５日にちです。
Christmas Day is December 25th.
このグラウンドは学校がっこうのものです。
This ground belongs to the school.
その話はなしはここではタブーです。
The topic is taboo here.
そのビルは日本一にっぽんいち高たかい建物たてものです。
That building is the tallest in Japan.
４０人にんクラスで女子じょしは１８人にんです。
The class of forty includes eighteen girls.