kaisya ha ginkou kara sien wo ukemasita.

Questions & Answers about kaisya ha ginkou kara sien wo ukemasita.

What does は do in this sentence?

は marks 会社 as the topic of the sentence.

So 会社は means something like:

  • As for the company, ...
  • The company ...

It tells the listener what the sentence is about. In English, we often just say The company received support from the bank, but in Japanese, は helps organize the sentence by setting up the topic first.

If you used が instead, the nuance would be a little different. が would focus more on the company as the specific subject, while は presents it as the topic already under discussion.


Why is 銀行 followed by から?

から means from here.

So:

  • 銀行から = from the bank

It marks the source of the support. The company received support from the bank.

This is a very common use of から:

  • 友だちから手紙をもらいました。 = I got a letter from a friend.
  • 先生から説明を受けました。 = I received an explanation from the teacher.

Why is 支援 marked with を?

を marks the direct object of the verb.

Here, the thing being received is 支援:

  • 支援を受けました = received support

So 支援 is what the company received, and を marks that.

Even though in English we say receive support, and support may feel a little abstract, Japanese still treats it as the object of 受ける.


What is the dictionary form of 受けました?

The dictionary form is 受ける.

Breakdown:

  • 受ける = to receive
  • 受けました = received / has received

This is the polite past form.

A quick conjugation pattern:

  • dictionary form: 受ける
  • polite non-past: 受けます
  • polite past: 受けました

So the sentence is talking about something that happened in the past.


Why is 受ける used instead of もらう?

Both can relate to receiving, but they are not always used in the same way.

受ける is often used in more formal, written, or institutional situations, especially with things like:

  • 支援 = support
  • 影響 = influence
  • 説明 = explanation
  • 被害 = damage

So 支援を受ける is a very natural and common expression meaning to receive support.

もらう is more everyday and personal. For example:

  • 友だちにプレゼントをもらいました。 = I received a present from a friend.

For a company receiving support from a bank, 支援を受けました sounds much more natural.


Can から be replaced with に here?

Sometimes に can mark the giver/source with verbs of receiving, but with this sentence 銀行から is the most natural choice.

Why?

  • から clearly emphasizes the source: from the bank
  • に is more common with verbs like もらう

For example:

  • 銀行から支援を受けました。 = very natural
  • 銀行に支援を受けました。 = unnatural

So with 受ける and a source like this, から is the right particle.


What are the readings of the words in this sentence?

Here are the standard readings:

  • 会社 → かいしゃ
  • は → written ha, but pronounced wa here
  • 銀行 → ぎんこう
  • から → から
  • 支援 → しえん
  • を → pronounced o
  • 受けました → うけました

So the full reading is:

かいしゃ は ぎんこう から しえん を うけました。

Two very common pronunciation points for beginners:

  • は is pronounced wa when it is a particle
  • を is pronounced o

Why are there no words like the, a, or plural markers?

Japanese usually does not require articles like a or the.

So:

  • 会社 can mean a company, the company, or companies, depending on context
  • 銀行 can mean a bank or the bank
  • 支援 can mean support in a general sense

The exact meaning is understood from context. In a textbook sentence, English often adds the because that sounds natural in English, but Japanese does not need it.


Is the word order fixed?

Japanese word order is more flexible than English, but particles show each word’s role.

The basic order here is:

  • 会社は = topic
  • 銀行から = from the bank
  • 支援を = support
  • 受けました = received

A very important rule is that the verb usually comes at the end.

Because the particles show the grammatical roles, some rearrangement is possible. For example:

  • 会社は支援を銀行から受けました。

This is still understandable, though the original order is more natural and easier for learners.

So yes, the order can move around somewhat, but the verb normally stays at the end.


Does 受けました mean simple past only, or can it also mean present perfect?

Japanese past tense often covers both simple past and something close to the English present perfect, depending on context.

So 受けました could be understood as:

  • received
  • has received

In many cases, context tells you which English translation sounds better.

For example:

  • in a historical report: received
  • in a recent news context: has received

Japanese does not force the same distinction that English does here.


Is this a formal sentence?

Yes, it is fairly formal or neutral-polite.

Reasons:

  • 受けました is in the polite -ます form
  • 支援を受ける is a somewhat formal expression
  • the sentence sounds like something you might see in news, business writing, or polite explanation

A casual version might use plain form:

  • 会社は銀行から支援を受けた。

That is not rude by itself, but it is less polite and more like plain written style or casual reporting.


Can 会社 really be the thing that receives something? It is not a person.

Yes. In Japanese, organizations like companies, schools, governments, and teams can naturally be the subject/topic of verbs like receive, announce, decide, and so on.

So 会社は銀行から支援を受けました is perfectly normal.

English does this too:

  • The company received support from the bank.

Even though a company is not a person, both languages commonly treat organizations as entities that can act and be acted upon.

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“How do verb conjugations work in Japanese?”
Japanese verbs conjugate based on tense, politeness, and mood. For example, the polite present form adds ‑ます to the verb stem, while the past tense uses ‑ました. Unlike English, Japanese verbs don't change based on the subject — the same form works for "I", "you", and "they".

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