Learn Hardcore Japanese: watasi ha syuumatu ni tomodati to kouen ni dekakemasu. - I go out to the park with a friend on the weekend.

は marks the topic of the sentence – what the sentence is “about.”
Here, 私 is the topic: as for me, on weekends I go out with friends to the park.

私は: “As for me / talking about me…”
が would mark 私 as the grammatical subject, often introducing new information or emphasizing who does the action.

In everyday sentences about yourself, 私は is very common. If you used 私が here, it would sound like you’re emphasizing “I am the one who goes out (as opposed to someone else),” which doesn’t seem necessary in this neutral sentence.

Why are there two に particles, in 週末に and 公園に? Don’t they mean the same thing?

The same particle に can mark different roles depending on context:

週末に – に marks the time when something happens:
- “on/at the weekend”
公園に – に marks the destination of movement:
- “to the park”

So:

週末に = “on the weekend”
公園に = “to the park”

It’s natural and very common in Japanese to have multiple に in one sentence, each playing a different role.

What exactly does the particle と do in 友達と here?

In this sentence, と means “with” (a companion marker):

友達と = “with (a) friend / with friends”

Common uses of と:

AとB = “A and B” (listing items)
Aと一緒に = “together with A”
Aと (with verbs like 行く, 話す, 会う, けんかする) = “do [verb] with A”

Here it’s type 3: 友達と出かけます = “go out with (my) friend(s).”

Why is 出かけます used instead of 行きます? Don’t both mean “to go”?

They’re similar but not the same:

行きます: “to go (to some place)” – neutral, just movement from one place to another.
出かけます: “to go out / to go out somewhere (from home, etc.)” – focuses on going out rather than the destination itself.

In 公園に出かけます:

Nuance: “I will go out (for an outing) to the park,”
not just “I go/will go to the park” in a purely directional sense.

You could say 公園に行きます, which is also correct, but 出かけます suggests “going out for leisure / to spend time outside.”

Can I change the word order? For example, can I say 友達と週末に公園に出かけます?

Yes. Japanese word order is flexible as long as you keep:

the verb at the end, and
each noun close to its particle.

These are all grammatical and natural:

私は週末に友達と公園に出かけます。
私は友達と週末に公園に出かけます。
私は週末に公園に友達と出かけます。 (less common, but possible)

The basic, neutral order is often:

[Topic] + [Time] + [Companion] + [Place] + [Verb]
私は週末に友達と公園に出かけます。

Moving elements around can add subtle emphasis, but for beginners, the “time → companion → place → verb” order is a good default.

Why is the verb in ます form? What level of politeness is 出かけます?

出かけます is the polite non-past form of the verb 出かける (“to go out”).

Dictionary/plain: 出かける
Polite non-past: 出かけます
Polite past: 出かけました
Polite negative: 出かけません
Polite past negative: 出かけませんでした

The 〜ます form is used in:

speaking to people you’re not very close to
talking to superiors
most textbooks and beginners’ conversations

So the sentence is polite but neutral – appropriate for most everyday situations where you’re not being informal.

Does 友達 mean “friend” or “friends” here? How do I know if it’s singular or plural?

友達 by itself does not mark singular/plural. It can mean:

“a friend”
“my friend”
“friends”
“my friends”

Context usually decides. In 友達と出かけます, the natural understanding is often “with a friend” or “with friends,” and English translators will choose what sounds most natural.

If you need to be explicit:

友達一人と = “with one friend”
友達二人と = “with two friends”
何人かの友達と = “with some friends”
友達たちと (rare / childish-sounding) is usually not needed; numbers or context are preferred.

Can I omit 私? Would 週末に友達と公園に出かけます still be correct?

Yes. Dropping pronouns is very common in Japanese when they’re clear from context.

週末に友達と公園に出かけます。

This is perfectly natural and often more natural in conversation, because it’s usually obvious that you’re talking about yourself.

You normally keep 私 when:

you’re introducing yourself in a new context
there’s possible confusion about who the subject is
you want to contrast yourself with others (e.g., 私は行きますが、彼は行きません)

Why is the tense written as 出かけます (present), but the meaning is “will go out”?

Japanese doesn’t have a separate future tense like English. The non-past form (here, 出かけます) covers both:

present/habitual: “I go out to the park on weekends.”
future: “I will go out to the park this weekend.”

Which one it means depends on context and time expressions:

いつも週末に友達と公園に出かけます。
→ “I always go out to the park with friends on weekends.” (habit)
今週末に友達と公園に出かけます。
→ “I’ll go out to the park with a friend this weekend.” (future plan)

In your original sentence, both “I go out (habitually)” and “I will go out (this weekend)” are possible, depending on context.

Could I say 週末は友達と公園に出かけます instead of 週末に? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

週末は友達と公園に出かけます。

The nuance changes:

週末に: に marks when the action happens – “on/at the weekend.”
週末は: は makes “weekends” the topic/contrast – “As for weekends…”

So:

週末に友達と公園に出かけます。
→ Neutral “I go/will go to the park with friends on the weekend.”
週末は友達と公園に出かけます。
→ “As for weekends, I go out to the park with friends.”
Often implies:
- this is your usual weekend habit, and/or
- contrast with other times:
  平日は忙しいですが、週末は友達と公園に出かけます。
  “I’m busy on weekdays, but on weekends I go out to the park with friends.”

So 週末に focuses on time, 週末は on weekends as a topic.

Why is there no を particle in this sentence? Shouldn’t there be an object?

出かける is an intransitive verb in Japanese – it doesn’t take a direct object with を.

It describes the subject leaving / going out, not “doing something to” an object.
Therefore, it combines with time, companion, and destination, but not a direct object.

So you have:

週末に (time)
友達と (companion)
公園に (destination)
出かけます (go out)

There is no direct object like “something” you’re doing to the park, so を is not needed.

Can I use へ instead of に in 公園に? What’s the difference between 公園に出かけます and 公園へ出かけます?

You can say either:

公園に出かけます。
公園へ出かけます。

Both are grammatical and understood as “(I) go out to the park.”

Nuance:

に:
- More common and neutral
- Focuses slightly more on arrival at the destination
へ:
- Emphasizes direction (“toward”) rather than arrival
- Feels a bit more literary/formal in many contexts

In everyday speech, に is more frequent. For practical purposes, 公園に出かけます is the safest default.

Are spaces between the Japanese words necessary, like 私は週末に友達と公園に出かけます?

No. In standard Japanese writing, words are not separated by spaces. The natural written form is:

私は週末に友達と公園に出かけます。

Textbooks and learning materials sometimes add spaces to help learners see word boundaries and particles, but in real Japanese:

no spaces between words
only punctuation like 。 and 、 (Japanese period and comma) are used in normal text.