kono mondai wa keikaku no shougai desu.

topic particle

Breakdown of kono mondai wa keikaku no shougai desu.

• です: to be
• の: possessive case particle
• この: this

Questions & Answers about kono mondai wa keikaku no shougai desu.

How do I read this sentence aloud?

A natural reading is:

この もんだい は けいかく の しょうがい です。
Kono mondai wa keikaku no shōgai desu.

Word readings:

• この = kono
• 問題 = mondai
• は = written ha but pronounced wa here
• 計画 = keikaku
• の = no
• 障害 = shōgai
• です = desu

What does この do here, and why isn’t it followed by の?

この means this and directly modifies the noun that follows it.

So:

• この問題 = this problem

You do not say このの問題.
Words like この, その, and あの already attach directly to a noun.

Compare:

• この問題 = this problem
• その問題 = that problem
• あの問題 = that problem over there

If this stands alone, Japanese uses これ instead:

• これは問題です。 = This is a problem.

What is the role of は in this sentence?