Breakdown of watasi ha tegami wo kakimasu.
はha
topic particle
私watasi
I
をwo
direct object particle
手紙tegami
letter
書くkaku
to write
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Questions & Answers about watasi ha tegami wo kakimasu.
Why is 私 followed by は instead of が?
は is the topic marker, not the subject marker. By using 私は, you’re saying “As for me…” and then stating what you do. If you used 私が, you’d be emphasizing who did the action (“It was I who wrote a letter”), often in answer to a question like 誰が手紙を書きますか？
What does the particle を do in 手紙を書きます?
を marks the direct object of the verb. It tells you that 手紙 (letter) is the thing being written.
Why does the verb 書きます come at the end of the sentence?
Japanese follows an SOV (Subject–Object–Verb) word order. Verbs naturally appear at the very end, after any topic/subject and object phrases.
What does the ます ending in 書きます indicate?
The ～ます form is the polite, non-past form of a verb. It:
• shows politeness (used with people you don’t know well or in formal settings)
• covers both present and future meanings (depending on context)
How do I form the past tense of 書きます?
Replace ～ます with ～ました. So 書きます → 書きました, which means “(I) wrote a letter” or “(I) have written a letter” in a polite style.
How do I change 書きます to the plain (casual) form?
The plain non-past form of a Group 1 verb like 書く is simply its dictionary form. You take 書きます, remove ます, and switch to 書く. That yields 書く (“to write” / “I write”).
Is it necessary to include 私は in this sentence? Can it be omitted?
No, it’s optional. In Japanese you often drop the topic/subject when it’s clear. 手紙を書きます still means “I will write a letter.” You add 私は only to be explicit or for contrast.
How would I say “I am writing a letter” to express continuous action?
Use the ～ている form: 手紙を書いています. That form indicates an action is currently in progress.
How is 手紙 read and why does the second syllable become が instead of か?
手紙 is read てがみ. The kanji are 手 (て, hand) + 紙 (かみ, paper). When two kanji form a compound, the second often undergoes 連濁 (rendaku), changing か to が.
Why are there spaces in 私 は 手紙 を 書きます? Japanese text normally doesn’t have spaces.
Those spaces are for teaching purposes only, to separate particles and words for learners. In real writing you’d see 私は手紙を書きます without any spaces.