watashi wa nihongo to eigo o benkyoushimasu.

I study Japanese and English.

Breakdown of watashi wa nihongo to eigo o benkyoushimasu.

• は: topic particle
• 私わたし: I
• を: direct object particle
• 日に本ほん語ご: Japanese (language)
• と: noun-connector particle
• 英えい語ご: English (language)
• 勉べん強きょうする: to study

Questions & Answers about watashi wa nihongo to eigo o benkyoushimasu.

What is the function of the particle は in this sentence?

は is the topic marker. It tells the listener that “I” (私) is the topic of the statement. In English you might think of it as “As for me, …”

Why is を used before 勉強します?

を marks the direct object of a transitive verb. Here, 日本語 and 英語 are the things you study, so they take を before the verb 勉強します.

What does the particle と do between 日本語 and 英語?

と is the “and” that lists two (or more) items. It connects 日本語 and 英語, indicating you study both languages.

Why is the verb written as 勉強します instead of 勉強する?

勉強します is the polite, present/future tense form of 勉強する. In casual speech you could say 私は日本語と英語を勉強する, but in formal or polite contexts you use -ます.

Can I swap the order of the objects and say 英語と日本語を勉強します?

Yes. You can list the objects in any order: 英語と日本語を勉強します still means “I study English and Japanese.” Changing the order may slightly shift emphasis, but it’s grammatically fine.

Is it necessary to include 私 at the beginning?

No. Japanese often drops the topic if it’s clear from context. So just 日本語と英語を勉強します could mean “I study Japanese and English,” especially if you’re answering “What do you study?”

Could I use が instead of を, like 日本語と英語が勉強します?

No. が marks the subject, and 勉強する is a transitive verb that needs an object marked by を. Using が here would imply the languages themselves are doing the studying, which doesn’t make sense.

Can I say 日本語も英語も勉強します to express “both”?

Yes. も…も means “both … and ….” Saying 日本語も英語も勉強します emphasizes that you study both languages equally.