kodomo ga haita.

The child vomited.

Breakdown of kodomo ga haita.

• 子こ供ども: child
• が: subject particle
• 吐はく: to vomit

Questions & Answers about kodomo ga haita.

How do you read 子供が吐いた?

It is read:

こども が はいた。

A few notes:

• 子供 = こども
• が = ga
• 吐いた = はいた

So the whole sentence is kodomo ga haita.

One thing learners often notice: 吐いた is pronounced はいた, which sounds the same as 履いた (wore/put on, for shoes, pants, etc.). The kanji tells you which meaning it is.

What is が doing here?

が marks the subject of the sentence.

So in 子供が吐いた, 子供 is the thing/person that performed or experienced the action:

• 子供が = the child / the children as the subject
• 吐いた = vomited

A natural way to think about it is:

• It was the child who vomited
• The child vomited

In many basic sentences, が simply tells you who or what did the action.

Why is it が and not は?