kyattotawaa wa takai.

topic particle

Breakdown of kyattotawaa wa takai.

• 高たかい: high
• キャットタワー: a cat tower

Questions & Answers about kyattotawaa wa takai.

Why is は written ha but pronounced wa here?

This is one of the first things learners notice.

When は is used as a particle marking the topic, it is pronounced wa, not ha.

So:

• キャットタワーは高い。
• pronounced: kyatto tawaa wa takai

However, when は is part of a regular word, it is usually pronounced ha.

Examples:

• はな = flower → hana
• はる = spring → haru

So in this sentence, は is the topic particle, which is why it sounds like wa.

What does は do in this sentence?

は marks the topic of the sentence.

So キャットタワーは高い。 is literally something like:

• As for the cat tower, it is tall/high.

This does not always translate naturally into English word-for-word, but it helps to understand the function.

Structure:

• キャットタワー = cat tower
• は = topic marker
• 高い = is tall/high

So the sentence is talking about the cat tower, and then saying something about it: it’s tall.