Question 1

What does 明後日 mean and how is it pronounced?

Accepted Answer

明後日 means “the day after tomorrow.” It’s pronounced あさって (asatte) in everyday Japanese. There is also an on-yomi reading みょうごにち, but that’s rare in conversation and mainly used in formal writing.

Question 2

Why is the particle は used after 明後日, and what does it do here?

Accepted Answer

The particle は marks 明後日 as the topic of the sentence. In Japanese, the topic is what you’re talking about, not necessarily the grammatical subject. So 明後日 は means “as for the day after tomorrow.” It sets up the frame for the rest of your comment or question.

Question 3

Why isn’t there a subject like “weather” in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Japanese often omits obvious or contextually understood subjects. Here, talking about 雨 (rain) already implies the weather. Adding “weather” (天気 が) would be redundant. The listener knows you’re asking about the weather for the day after tomorrow.

Question 4

Why does 雨 not take a particle like が?

Accepted Answer

Because 雨 is the complement to the copula です, not a subject that needs marking by が. In sentences like A は B です, B is a noun phrase or adjective describing the topic; it doesn’t get its own particle.

Question 5

How does the copula です function after a noun?

Accepted Answer

です is a polite copula (“to be”). When you attach です to a noun (like 雨), it turns the noun into a polite predicate: “is rain.” Without です, you’d have a very plain or abrupt statement like 雨か.

Question 6

What is the function of か at the end of the sentence?

Accepted Answer

The particle か turns the sentence into a question. Combined with です, ですか marks a polite yes/no question: “Is it (going to be) rain?”

Question 7

Could I use でしょうか instead of ですか to ask this question?

Accepted Answer

Yes. でしょうか is a softer, more tentative way to ask, as if you’re less certain:  
• 明後日 は 雨でしょうか？ (“I wonder if it will rain the day after tomorrow.”)  
Using でしょうか often sounds more polite or indirect than ですか.

Question 8

Why is the word order 明後日 は 雨 です か, instead of “Will it rain the day after tomorrow?”

Accepted Answer

Japanese commonly uses a topic–comment structure. You start with the time frame (明後日 は) as the topic, then state/comment on it (雨 ですか？). In English you’d say “Will it rain…,” putting the verb first, but in Japanese the copula です (to be) follows the noun.

Question 9

How would you answer this question in Japanese if you knew it would rain?

Accepted Answer

You could say:  
• はい、明後日は雨です。 (“Yes, it will rain the day after tomorrow.”)  
Or more simply:  
• はい、雨です。  
If you want to say it won’t rain:  
• いいえ、雨じゃありません／雨ではありません。

Question 10

How could I ask the same question in casual (plain) Japanese?

Accepted Answer

In casual speech you can drop です and even か if the rising intonation alone signals a question. For example:  
• 明後日雨？  
• 明後日雨かな？ (adds “I wonder…”)  
Or keep か but drop です:  
• 明後日は雨か？

asatte ha ame desu ka?

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Master Japanese — from asatte ha ame desu ka to fluency