Group 2 Verbs
“As each layer of shadow is mined from the darkness, as each fear is faced and each projection reclaimed, the gold shines through.” - Connie Zweig
Group 2 Verbs are the other “big group” of verbs besides Group 1. Just like Group 1 verbs, there are a certain set of rules that will help you to 1) identify them and 2) turn them into dictionary form verbs (casual verbs).
Group 2 Verbs are identified in the following way:
- Take the verb (let’s say たべます)
- Make it to stem form (たべます turns into たべ)
- Is the last kana an え sound (yes it is, it’s a べ!)? If so, it’s a Group 2 Verb.
That’s all there is to it. We have Group 1 (い sound) and Group 2 (え sound). Simple as that. Can you identify what “Group” the following verbs are in?
Group 2, because the stem form ends with an え sound (け)
Group 1, because the stem form ends with an い sound (み)
Group 2, because the stem form ends with an え sound (め)
Group 2, because the stem form ends with an え sound (え)
Group 2, because the stem form ends with an え sound (れ)
Group 2, because the stem form ends with an え sound (け)
Group 1, because the stem form ends with an い sound (り)
Overall, I think that should be pretty easy. Jot down a note for yourself if you’d like to help you differentiate between the two.
Now, there’s one more step to turn these Group 2 Verbs into dictionary form verbs. We’ve stripped it down to stem form, and we’ve identified it, so now all you have to do is add a る to the end.
たべます (take it down to stem form)
たべ (add a る to it)
たべる (and you have the dictionary form of たべます!)
Compare this really quickly to Group 1 verbs. For those, you’d strip it down to stem form, then take the last kana and change it to an う sound. A totally different conversion process, which is why you need to be able to identify what type of verb each verb is. Go ahead and convert the following verbs to dictionary form (there will be both Group 1 and Group 2 verbs present, so be sure to identify them first!!).
おもう (Group 1)
はじめる (Group 2)
わすれる (Group 2)
まける (Group 2)
とける (Group 2)
ことわる (Group 1)
おもいだす (Group 1)
いじめる (Group 2)
So far so good? Now, before I throw you a curve ball with the exceptions list, go ahead and practice converting ます form to dictionary form with this practice sheet!