kono mokume wa utsukushii.

This wood grain is beautiful.

Breakdown of kono mokume wa utsukushii.

• は: topic particle
• この: this
• 美うつくしい: beautiful
• 木目もくめ: wood grain

Questions & Answers about kono mokume wa utsukushii.

How do you read this sentence?

It is read:

この もくめ は うつくしい。

• この = kono
• 木目 = mokume
• は = wa (as a particle)
• 美しい = utsukushii

So the full reading is kono mokume wa utsukushii.

Why is は pronounced wa here instead of ha?

Because は is being used as the topic particle.

When は is a particle, it is pronounced wa, even though the usual reading of the character is ha.

So in this sentence:

• 木目は = mokume wa

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

Why does the sentence use この instead of これ?