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Learn Hardcore Japanese: kanozyo ha yuukan desu. - She is brave.

Hardcore Japanese
/Taking a first-aid course
/kanojo wa yuukan desu.

kanojo wa yuukan desu.

彼女かのじょ　は　勇敢ゆうかん　です。kanojo wa yuukan desu.

Breakdown of kanojo wa yuukan desu.

彼女かのじょkanojo

勇敢ゆうかんyuukan

Questions & Answers about kanojo wa yuukan desu.

Why is the particle は used here?

は marks the topic of the sentence. In 彼女は勇敢です, the speaker is saying something about her.

A natural way to think about it is:

彼女は = As for her, ...
勇敢です = (she) is brave

So the sentence has a topic-comment structure:

topic: 彼女
comment: 勇敢です

Why isn’t が used instead of は?

Both は and が can sometimes translate to she in English sentences, but they do different jobs.

は introduces the topic and often sounds more neutral or contrastive.
が identifies or emphasizes the subject more strongly.

So:

彼女は勇敢です。 = She is brave. / As for her, she is brave.
彼女が勇敢です。 would sound more like She is the brave one or It is she who is brave, depending on context.

In a simple textbook sentence like this, は is the most natural choice.

What kind of word is 勇敢?

Nihon-shiki romanizationwatasi ha tyuugoku kara kimasita

Hepburn romanizationwatashi wa chuugoku kara kimashita

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勇敢 is a na-adjective in Japanese.

That means it behaves differently from an i-adjective like 大きい or 高い.

Examples:

勇敢な人 = a brave person
彼女は勇敢です = She is brave

So even though it translates like an English adjective, grammatically it belongs to the na-adjective group.

Why is there no な after 勇敢 here?

Because な is only used when a na-adjective comes directly before a noun.

For example:

勇敢な女性 = a brave woman

But in this sentence, 勇敢 is not modifying a noun. It is part of the predicate:

彼女は勇敢です。

So you do not say 勇敢なです. That would be incorrect.

What exactly does です do in this sentence?

です is the polite ending here. It makes the sentence sound courteous and complete.

In this sentence:

彼女は勇敢です。 = polite
彼女は勇敢だ。 = plain style

You can think of です here as doing a job similar to is, but it is not always a perfect one-to-one match with English to be. It mainly marks the sentence as polite and helps complete the predicate.

Can I say 彼女は勇敢だ instead?

Yes. 彼女は勇敢だ is grammatically correct.

The difference is style:

彼女は勇敢です。 = polite
彼女は勇敢だ。 = plain / less formal

Use です in polite conversation, class, or when speaking respectfully. Use だ in casual speech, writing, or certain narrative styles.

Does 彼女 only mean she?

Not always. 彼女 can mean:

she
girlfriend, depending on context

In 彼女は勇敢です, it most naturally means she, because it is being used as the topic of a sentence describing someone.

Still, learners should know that 彼女 can also mean girlfriend in other situations.

Do Japanese speakers often use 彼女 the same way English speakers use she?

Not as often. Japanese often omits pronouns when the meaning is clear from context.

So while 彼女は勇敢です is a perfectly good example sentence, in real conversation a speaker might simply say:

勇敢です。
あの人は勇敢です。 = That person is brave.
use the person’s name instead

This is one reason Japanese can feel less pronoun-heavy than English.

Is the word order important here?

Yes, but Japanese word order works differently from English.

This sentence follows a very common pattern:

topic + は + description + です

So:

彼女 = topic noun
は = topic marker
勇敢 = description
です = polite sentence ending

English says She is brave, with the verb in the middle. Japanese often puts the main description before the final ending, so the sentence ends with です.

How is は pronounced here?

Even though it is written with the kana は, when it is used as the topic particle, it is pronounced wa.

So:

彼女は勇敢です
pronounced roughly: kanojo wa yuukan desu

This is one of the first pronunciation exceptions Japanese learners meet.

How is 勇敢 pronounced?

勇敢 is pronounced ゆうかん.

A rough romanization is:

yūkan or yuukan

Breakdown:

ゆう = yuu
かん = kan

The ゆう part has a long vowel sound, so it is a little longer than just ゆ.

Can 勇敢 be used before a noun too?

Yes. Because it is a na-adjective, it can modify a noun with な.

Examples:

勇敢な人 = a brave person
勇敢な兵士 = a brave soldier
勇敢な彼女 = the brave her / brave girlfriend, though this exact phrase depends on context

So:

before a noun: 勇敢な
at the end of a sentence: 勇敢です / 勇敢だ

Is 勇敢 a common everyday word for brave?

It is a real and useful word, but it can sound a bit formal, literary, or descriptive depending on context.

Other words can also express similar ideas, such as:

大胆 = bold
度胸がある = to have guts
勇気がある = to have courage

But 勇敢 is completely natural and correct, especially in writing, descriptions, or textbook examples.

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