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Learn Hardcore Japanese: kono yakimono ha omoi. - This ceramic ware is heavy.

Hardcore Japanese
/Taking a pottery class
/kono yakimono wa omoi.

kono yakimono wa omoi.

この　焼やき物もの　は　重おもい。kono yakimono wa omoi.

This ceramic ware is heavy.

Breakdown of kono yakimono wa omoi.

重おもいomoi

焼やき物ものyakimono

Questions & Answers about kono yakimono wa omoi.

How do you read 焼き物 in this sentence?

It is read やきもの.

A few readings in the sentence are:

この = kono
焼き物 = yakimono
は = wa (not ha here)
重い = omoi

So the full sentence is read:

このやきものはおもい。

What does 焼き物 mean here?

In this sentence, 焼き物 usually means pottery, ceramic ware, or a ceramic piece/object.

It can refer to things like:

a bowl
a plate
a vase
pottery in general

One thing to know: 焼き物 can also mean grilled food in some contexts. Japanese often relies on context to decide which meaning is intended. Since the sentence says This pottery is heavy, the meaning here is clearly ceramic ware / pottery.

Why is この used instead of これ?

Nihon-shiki romanizationwatasi ha tyuugoku kara kimasita

Hepburn romanizationwatashi wa chuugoku kara kimashita

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この must be followed by a noun, while これ stands alone.

この焼き物 = this pottery / this ceramic piece
これ = this

So you can say:

この焼き物は重い。 = This piece of pottery is heavy.
これは重い。 = This is heavy.

But you cannot say このは重い because この needs a noun after it.

Why is は pronounced wa instead of ha?

When は is used as the topic particle, it is pronounced wa.

This is one of the most important pronunciation exceptions in Japanese:

は as a normal syllable in a word: usually ha
は as a particle: wa

So in this sentence:

written: は
pronounced: wa

That is why the sentence sounds like このやきものはおもい.

What does the particle は do in this sentence?

は marks the topic of the sentence.

Here, the topic is この焼き物 = this pottery.

The sentence is basically saying:

As for this pottery, it is heavy.

That is a very common Japanese sentence pattern:

X は Y
As for X, it is Y

So:

この焼き物は重い。
As for this piece of pottery, it is heavy.

In natural English, we just say This pottery is heavy.

Why doesn’t the sentence end with です?

Because 重い is an い-adjective, and it can end a sentence by itself in plain style.

So both of these are possible:

この焼き物は重い。 = plain / casual
この焼き物は重いです。 = polite

Unlike nouns and な-adjectives, い-adjectives do not need です to be grammatical.

For example:

高い。 = It is expensive / tall.
高いです。 = polite version

So the sentence without です is completely normal.

Is 重い an adjective? What kind?

Yes. 重い is an い-adjective.

That means it behaves like this:

dictionary form: 重い = heavy
negative: 重くない = not heavy
past: 重かった = was heavy
past negative: 重くなかった = was not heavy

With politeness:

重いです
重くないです or 重くありません
重かったです
重くなかったです or 重くありませんでした

So in your sentence, 重い is the predicate: it describes the topic この焼き物.

What is the basic sentence structure here?

The structure is:

この焼き物 + は + 重い

Or more generally:

[noun phrase] + は + [adjective]

So this is a very common pattern:

この本は面白い。 = This book is interesting.
そのかばんは高い。 = That bag is expensive.
この焼き物は重い。 = This pottery is heavy.

Japanese often puts the thing being talked about first, then gives information about it.

Why are there spaces in the sentence?

The spaces are usually there only for learners.

Normal Japanese writing would usually be:

この焼き物は重い。

Japanese is normally written without spaces between words. Textbooks and beginner materials often add spaces to make it easier to see the parts:

この
焼き物
は
重い

So the spaces are not part of standard spelling; they are just a reading aid.

Can 焼き物 be written differently?

Yes. You may see:

焼き物
やきもの

Both are fine, depending on the text and intended difficulty level.

Also, Japanese words are often written with a mix of kanji and hiragana, especially when the kanji may be harder for learners. In this word:

焼 is the kanji
きもの is written in hiragana

This mixed writing is very common in Japanese.

Could the subject be something other than this pottery?

In practice, この焼き物 is the thing being talked about, so in English it feels like the subject: This pottery is heavy.

But grammatically, many Japanese explanations call この焼き物 the topic, marked by は, rather than the subject.

Japanese often leaves the exact subject implied by context. Here, though, the sentence is straightforward: the topic and the thing being described are the same object.

So for a beginner, it is fine to understand it as:

topic: this pottery
description: heavy

If I wanted to make this polite, what would I say?

You would usually say:

この焼き物は重いです。

That is the polite version of the sentence.

Compare:

この焼き物は重い。 = plain / casual
この焼き物は重いです。 = polite

Both mean the same thing. The difference is social tone, not basic meaning.

Can I replace この with other similar words?

Yes. You can use the ko-so-a-do set:

この焼き物 = this pottery (near the speaker)
その焼き物 = that pottery (near the listener / previously mentioned)
あの焼き物 = that pottery over there (away from both)
どの焼き物 = which pottery

Examples:

その焼き物は重い。 = That pottery is heavy.
あの焼き物は重い。 = That pottery over there is heavy.
どの焼き物が重いですか。 = Which piece of pottery is heavy?

This is a very useful pattern to learn early.

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