…
Breakdown of syuukan wo kaeruno ha muzukasii desu ga, zisin ga areba kanou desu.
はha
topic particle
ですdesu
to be
をwo
direct object particle
がga
subject particle
〜の〜no
verb nominalizer
難しいmuzukasii
difficult
がga
conjunction particle
〜ば〜ba
conditional form
あるaru
to exist/have
自信zisin
confidence
習慣syuukan
habit
変えるkaeru
to change
可能kanou
possible
Questions & Answers about syuukan wo kaeruno ha muzukasii desu ga, zisin ga areba kanou desu.
What does the の in 習慣を変えるのは do?
の after a verb nominalizes the action, turning changing habits into a noun phrase so you can treat it like a noun (for example, mark it with は).
Why do we attach は to 変えるの instead of directly to 習慣?
Because the topic here is the act of changing habits, not the habit itself. Marking 変えるの with は signals “as for changing habits…” rather than “as for habits…”
Why are there two が particles in 難しいですが and 自信があれば? Aren’t they the same?
They serve different roles:
- In 難しいですが, が is a conjunction meaning but, connecting the first clause to the second in polite speech.
- In 自信があれば, が is the subject marker for 自信, indicating if one has confidence…
What form is あれば in 自信があれば, and why is it used here?
あれば is the provisional (conditional) form of ある (“to exist/have”). It expresses “if there is/if you have,” so 自信があれば means “if (you) have confidence…”
Why is 可能 used with です as 可能です? Is 可能 a noun or adjective?
可能 (かのう) is a な-adjective (and can also function as a noun) meaning “possible.” In polite speech you add the copula です: 可能です (“it is possible”). In casual speech you could say 可能だ instead.
Could we use こと instead of の in 習慣を変えるのは? What’s the difference?
Yes—習慣を変えることは is equally correct. こと is the standard nominalizer and is often more formal. の is more colloquial and can give a softer or more conversational tone.
Why use the transitive 変える instead of the intransitive 変わる here?
Transitive 変える means “to actively change something” (you change your habits). Intransitive 変わる means “something changes on its own,” which doesn’t convey the deliberate act of changing a habit.
In 自信があれば可能です, what exactly is possible? Is something omitted?
Yes. The second clause omits the full phrase 習慣を変えるのは from the first clause. By context it means “if you have confidence, changing habits is possible.”
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“How do verb conjugations work in Japanese?”
Japanese verbs conjugate based on tense, politeness, and mood. For example, the polite present form adds ‑ます to the verb stem, while the past tense uses ‑ました. Unlike English, Japanese verbs don't change based on the subject — the same form works for "I", "you", and "they".
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