Breakdown of watasi ha hurui sumaho wo kaikaemasu.
はha
topic particle
私watasi
I
をwo
direct object particle
スマホsumaho
smartphone
古いhurui
old
買い替えるkaikaeru
to replace
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Questions & Answers about watasi ha hurui sumaho wo kaikaemasu.
What does 買い替えます mean exactly, and how is it different from just 買います?
買い替えます is the polite non-past form of the verb 買い替える, which literally means “to buy and replace (something old with something new).” Key points:
- 買います simply means “to buy.”
- 買い替えます implies you already have an old item and you’re replacing it by purchasing a new one.
Why is 古い placed directly before スマホ, and why isn’t there a particle like の between them?
In Japanese, い-adjectives like 古い (“old”) directly modify nouns without any additional particle. Structure:
- 古い スマホ = “old smartphone”
No の is needed because 古い is already an adjective, not a noun.
Why do we use the particle を after スマホ, instead of が or は?
The particle を marks the direct object—the thing being acted upon. Here, スマホ is what you’re “buying and replacing.” If you used が, it would mark the subject, which doesn’t fit this verb. は could mark a topic but wouldn’t show that you’re directly replacing the smartphone.
What role does は play after 私? Could we use が instead?
は is the topic marker. It tells the listener “I’m going to talk about myself.”
- 私 は: “As for me…”
Using が (私 が) would mark “I” as the grammatical subject, but は is more natural here since you’re making a statement about your own action.
Can you omit 私 は and just say 古い スマホ を 買い替えます?
Yes. Japanese often drops the topic/pronoun when context is clear. If it’s obvious you’re talking about yourself, 古い スマホ を 買い替えます is perfectly natural.
Is there any nuance between 買い替える and 買い直す?
They’re similar but have slight differences:
- 買い替える focuses on replacing an old item with a new one (planned upgrade).
- 買い直す literally means “buy again,” often after returning or because the first purchase was wrong/unsatisfactory.
Why is 買い替えます written with kanji and kana mixed? Could you write it all in kana?
Japanese verbs often use kanji for the root and kana for the inflection/compounding part:
- 買 (kanji for “buy”)
- い替え (kana + kanji for “replace”)
- ます (polite ending in kana)
You can write it all in kana (かいかえます), but mixing kanji and kana is standard for readability.