To Think About Verbs
“Small is the number of people who see with their eyes and think with their minds.” – Albert Einstein
I’m guessing you’ve figured out the whole casual+と思います pattern thing already. Lucky for you this doesn’t change with verbs. As long as you’re okay with your casual verbs (present/future, past, negative, and past negative included) you should be okay with adding と思います as well.
Let’s take a look at some examples.
a今日 は すし を たべる と 思います
I think I will eat sushi today
aボビーさん は とうきょう に いった と 思う
I think Bobby went to Tokyo
a中田さん は きょうと に いかなかった と 思う
I think Nakada didn’t go to Kyoto
aまだ たべなかった と 思う
I think (he/she) still hasen’t eaten yet
aトマト や りんご を なげた と 思う
I think (he/she) threw a tomato and an apple (and some other things)
You can see how it’s just [casual-verb]+と思います／思う. As long as you know the sentence you’re saying and you also know the と思う part, you can combine them into one ultimate thinking sentence.
The best way to remember all these rules, of course, is to practice and actually do something. You should understand the basic concepts at this point. You should also, hopefully, be able to recall the rules for と思もいます when it comes to nouns, adjectives, and verbs. Before moving on to the practice page, make sure you know the following things:
- Know the Japanese word for “to think” — 思います／思う
- Know casual form for nouns, adjectives (both い and な), and verbs
- Know the “pattern” for nouns, adjectives, and verbs along with と思う
If you know these things, you should be good for the practice, which should help solidify this knowledge.