# 買った本: Clauses Before Nouns

https://langs123.com/en/japanese/linking/noun-modification/
CEFR A2 · 2026-10-24 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> A plain-form clause placed directly before a noun describes it: **私****わたし****が****買****か****った****本****ほん** is “the book I bought”. The noun stands last, and no word for “that” or “which” comes between: これは私わたしが買かった**本****ほん**です。

## Summary

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Pattern | clause + noun | これは**私****わたし****が****買****か****った****本****ほん**です。 | This is the book I bought. |
| Plain form | The clause ends in the plain form, never in **ます**. | きのう**見****み****た**えいがは、おもしろかったです。 | The movie I saw yesterday was interesting. |
| Subject | Inside the clause the subject takes **が** (or **の**), not **は**. | これは私わたし**が**買かった本ほんです。 | This is the book I bought. |
| Negative | The clause takes the plain **ない** form. | 私わたしが食たべ**ない**ものは、さしみです。 | What I don't eat is sashimi. |
| The noun as doer | The noun can be the one who acts in the clause. | テレビを見みている**人****ひと**は、たなかさんです。 | The person watching TV is Tanaka-san. |
| The noun as place | The particle the noun would take in the clause drops out. | 先生せんせいが住すんでいる**町****まち**は、大おおきいです。 | The town where the teacher lives is big. |
| Trap | **が**, not **は**, after the clause's subject. | これは私わたし**が**買かった本ほんです。 | This is the book I bought. |
| Trap | No **の** between the clause and the noun. | 日本にほんに住すんでいる**ともだち**がいます。 | I have a friend who lives in Japan. |

## Overview

- A clause before a noun describes it; the noun comes last. これは**私****わたし****が****買****か****った**本ほんです。 (This is the book I bought.)
- Japanese has no word for “that” or “which”: the clause and the noun stand side by side. 日本にほんに住すんでいる**ともだち**がいます。 (I have a friend who lives in Japan.)
- The clause ends in the plain form, even when the whole sentence ends in the polite form. See The Plain Form. きのう**見****み****た**えいがは、おもしろかったです。 (The movie I saw yesterday was interesting.)
- A single adjective before a noun is a smaller case of the same order. See い-Adjectives and な-Adjectives.

## Form: the clause before the noun

| Form | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Present | **私****わたし****がよく****行****い****く**みせは小ちいさいです。 | The shop I often go to is small. |
| Negative | **私****わたし****が****食****た****べない**ものは、さしみです。 | What I don't eat is sashimi. |
| Past | **きのう****見****み****た**えいがは、おもしろかったです。 | The movie I saw yesterday was interesting. |
| In progress | **テレビを****見****み****ている**人ひとは、たなかさんです。 | The person watching TV is Tanaka-san. |

- The subject of the clause takes **が**; **の** stands in its place in writing and careful speech. これは私わたし**の**買かった本ほんです。 (This is the book I bought.)
- The topic particle **は** does not stand inside the clause. See は and が.

## Use: what the noun is in the clause

| Use | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The object of the clause | これは私わたしが買かった**本****ほん**です。 | This is the book I bought. |
| The doer of the clause | 日本にほんに住すんでいる**ともだち**がいます。 | I have a friend who lives in Japan. |
| The place of the clause | 先生せんせいが住すんでいる**町****まち**は、大おおきいです。 | The town where the teacher lives is big. |

- The particle the noun would take in the clause (**を**, **が**, **に**, **で**) drops out. See Particles を, に, で, へ. テレビ**を**見みている人ひと (the person watching TV)

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| これは私わたしは買かった本ほんです。 | これは私わたし**が**買かった本ほんです。 | inside the clause the subject takes **が**; **は** cannot stand there |
| これは私わたしが買かいました本ほんです。 | これは私わたしが**買****か****った**本ほんです。 | the clause ends in the plain form; the polite **ます** cannot stand before a noun |
| 日本にほんに住すんでいるのともだちがいます。 | 日本にほんに住すんでいる**ともだち**がいます。 | no **の** joins the clause to the noun; they stand side by side |
| ともだちがいます。日本にほんに住すんでいる。 | 日本にほんに住すんでいる**ともだち**がいます。 | the clause comes before the noun, never after it; English “who lives” follows the noun |