watashi wa atarashii benkyou no houhou o tameshimasu.

topic particle

Breakdown of watashi wa atarashii benkyou no houhou o tameshimasu.

• 私わたし: I
• を: direct object particle
• の: possessive case particle
• 新あたらしい: new
• 勉強べんきょう: study
• 方法ほうほう: method
• 試ためす: to try; to test

Questions & Answers about watashi wa atarashii benkyou no houhou o tameshimasu.

Why is the word order so different from English? Why does the verb 試します come at the end?

Japanese basic word order is Subject–Object–Verb (SOV), unlike English, which is Subject–Verb–Object (SVO).

• English: I (subject) try (verb) a new way of studying (object).
• Japanese: 私 (subject/topic) は 新しい勉強の方法 (object) を 試します (verb).

In Japanese, the main verb almost always comes at the end of the sentence. All the information about who, what, when, how, etc. is placed before the verb. So it’s perfectly normal and expected that 試します is at the end.

Why is は used after 私? What does it do, and could we use が instead?

は is the topic particle. It marks what the sentence is about, not necessarily the grammatical subject in the strict sense.

• 私 = I / me
• 私
  • は → 私 は = As for me / Speaking of me / I (topic)

In this sentence, 私 is both the topic and the subject, but Japanese chooses to highlight it as the topic with は.

Could we say 私が新しい勉強の方法を試します?

• Grammatically yes, it’s correct.
• 私が puts more emphasis on “I (as opposed to someone else)”.
  • For example, if someone asked “Who will try a new study method?”, you might answer: 私が新しい勉強の方法を試します (“I will try a new study method”).

In neutral, simple statements, 私は is more natural because you’re just setting “me” as the topic and giving information about yourself.

Do I really need to say 私? Can it be omitted?

In everyday Japanese, yes, you can (and usually do) omit 私 when it’s obvious from context who the subject is.

So:

• (私 は) 新しい勉強の方法を試します。

is perfectly natural and often more typical in conversation. People will understand from the situation that you are talking about yourself.

You usually include 私 when:

• You’re introducing yourself for the first time.
• You need to contrast me vs. others.
• The subject might otherwise be unclear.

What exactly does の do in 勉強 の 方法?

の is a particle that mainly shows a “of” or possessive / descriptive relationship between two nouns.

• 勉強 = study / studying
• 方法 = method / way
• 勉強 の 方法 = “method of studying” or “study method”

So 勉強の方法 literally means “the method belonging to/related to study”.

This の is extremely common:

• 日本 の 車 = cars of Japan / Japanese cars
• 学生 の 本 = the student’s book / book of a student

Why is it 新しい 勉強 の 方法 and not 勉強 の 新しい 方法? Does the order matter?

Both orders are grammatically possible, but there’s a difference in feel.

1. 新しい勉強の方法

   • 新しい modifies the entire noun phrase 勉強の方法.
   • Roughly: “a new method of studying”.
   • This is the most natural and common way to say this.

2. 勉強の新しい方法

   • 新しい is more directly modifying 方法, and 勉強の just labels what kind of 方法.
   • Roughly: “the new method (among the methods) of study”.
   • Sounds a bit more formal, or like you are contrasting new vs old methods.

For a simple, natural sentence like the one you have, 新しい勉強の方法 is what people would normally say.

Could I say 勉強方法 instead of 勉強の方法?

Yes, 勉強方法（べんきょうほうほう） is also used and means basically the same thing: study method / method of studying.

• 勉強の方法 feels a bit more neutral or explicit.
• 勉強方法 is more compact, a bit like making a compound word (“study-method”).

In many contexts, they are interchangeable:

• 新しい勉強の方法を試します。
• 新しい勉強方法を試します。

Both are natural. Beginners often find 勉強の方法 easier to parse because the relationship is clearly marked by の.

What does を do after 方法? Why isn’t 勉強 marked with を?

を marks the direct object of the verb — the thing that the action is done to.

• Verb: 試します = to try
• Direct object: 新しい勉強の方法 = new method of studying

So you mark that with を:

• 新しい勉強の方法 を 試します
  → [I] try a new method of studying.

Here, you are not “trying study” itself; you are trying a method (方法). That’s why 方法 (inside the larger phrase 新しい勉強の方法) is the thing marked by を, not 勉強.

Is 勉強 here a noun or a verb? I thought “to study” was 勉強する.

In Japanese, 勉強 is originally a noun, meaning “study / studying”.

• 勉強 (noun) = study
• 勉強する (verb) = to study (literally “to do study”)

In 勉強の方法, 勉強 is clearly used as a noun:

• 勉強 の 方法 = method of (the noun) study

So this is:

• Noun (勉強) + の + Noun (方法)

If you wanted to use the verb idea, you might paraphrase as:

• 勉強する方法 = a method to study
  But in your sentence, it’s in the noun form.

Why is 試します in the “present tense” if the English meaning is “I will try”?

Japanese has basically two tenses:

• Non-past: ～ます / ～る (covers both present and future)
• Past: ～ました / ～た

試します is non-past polite, so it can mean:

• “I try”
• “I will try”

Which it means depends on context. In many cases, talking about a plan or intention uses the non-past, and we translate it as future in English:

• 明日、新しい勉強の方法を試します。
  → I will try a new study method tomorrow.

In your sentence, if the context is about what you plan to do, English naturally becomes “will try” even though Japanese just uses the non-past form 試します.

What’s the difference between 試します and 試してみます?

Both involve “trying”, but the nuance is different:

• 試します (試す)

  • Straight “to test / to try (something out)”.
  • Slightly more neutral or objective.

• 試してみます (試す + てみる)

  • ～てみる adds the nuance of “try doing (and see what happens)”.
  • More personal / tentative / exploratory: “I’ll give it a try and see.”

Compare:

• 新しい勉強の方法を試します。
  → I will test/try a new study method.
• 新しい勉強の方法を試してみます。
  → I’ll try a new study method (and see how it goes).

In everyday speech, 試してみます often sounds more natural when you’re casually talking about giving something a try.

Are spaces normally used between words in Japanese like in 私　は　新しい　勉強　の　方法　を　試します?

No. Standard Japanese writing does not normally use spaces between words.

The sentence in real Japanese text would usually be written as:

• 私は新しい勉強の方法を試します。

Spaces are added in teaching materials to help learners see where each word or particle starts and ends. Native texts (books, manga, newspapers, websites, etc.) almost always write without spaces, mixing kanji and kana instead.

Is there a more natural or casual way to say this sentence?

Yes, depending on the context and tone, people might say:

• 新しい勉強の方法を試してみる。
  → Casual (plain form), using 試してみる.
• 新しい勉強法を試してみようかな。
  → Very natural, casual, with 勉強法 and the volitional ～よう:
  “Maybe I’ll try a new study method.”

Your original:

• 新しい勉強の方法を試します。

is polite, clear, and completely correct — good for spoken polite Japanese or simple written Japanese.