watasi ha komame ni mizu wo nomu you ni site imasu.

I try to drink water frequently.

Breakdown of watasi ha komame ni mizu wo nomu you ni site imasu.

• は: topic particle
• 私わたし: I
• を: direct object particle
• 水みず: water
• 飲のむ: to drink
• する: to do
• 〜て いる: progressive form
• よう に: so that
• こまめ に: frequently

Questions & Answers about watasi ha komame ni mizu wo nomu you ni site imasu.

What does こまめに really mean here? Is it just “often”?

こまめに is usually translated as “frequently,” “regularly,” or “diligently (at short intervals)”.

Nuance:

• よく = often, many times (frequency in general)
• たくさん = a lot (amount/quantity)
• しょっちゅう = constantly, all the time (can sound like “too often”)
• こまめに = at small, regular intervals, with some care/attention

So in this sentence, こまめに suggests:

• not chugging a lot at once,
• but taking care to drink small amounts of water regularly throughout the day.

It has a slightly “health-conscious / careful” nuance rather than just “often.”

Why is there a に after こまめ? What role does こまめに play in the sentence?

こまめに is an adverb modifying the verb 飲む.

In Japanese, many adjectives or adjectival nouns become adverbs with に:

• 静か → 静かに (quiet → quietly)
• 丁寧 → 丁寧に (polite → politely)
• 簡単 → 簡単に (simple → simply)

Similarly,

• こまめ → こまめに = “frequently/regularly (in a careful way)”

So こまめに水を飲む = “drink water frequently/regularly.”
The に just turns こまめ into an adverb describing how the drinking is done.

What does the whole pattern 飲むようにしています mean? Why not just 飲んでいます or 飲みます?

〜ようにしている expresses the idea of:

• “I make an effort to do ~”
• “I make it a habit to ~”
• “I try to ensure that I ~”

So:

• 水を飲みます = I drink water. (plain statement of action/habit)
• 水を飲んでいます = I am drinking water / I drink water (habitual or currently).
• 水を飲むようにしています = I make sure / try to drink water (there is a sense of conscious effort or chosen habit).

In the given sentence, the speaker isn’t just stating a fact. They are saying they consciously make it a practice to drink water frequently, as a kind of self-care or rule they follow.

What is the literal idea behind 〜ようにする? What does よう mean here?

In this grammar pattern, よう means something like “way” or “state/condition.”

• V-る ようにする = “to make it so that (one) does V”,
  i.e. “to arrange/try/ensure that V happens.”

So:

• 水を飲むようにする
  ≈ “to make it so that (I) drink water”
  → “to try to drink water / to make a point of drinking water.”

Then:

• 水を飲むようにしています (with 〜ている)
  = “I am in the state of making it so that I drink water”
  → more naturally: “I keep trying to drink water / I make a habit of drinking water.”

What is the difference between 〜ようにしている and 〜ようにする without ている?

Both involve effort, but the focus is slightly different.

• V-る ようにする

  • One-time decision / intention:
    “I will try to V,” “I’ll start making an effort to V.”
  • Example:
    これからは早く寝るようにします。
    “From now on, I’ll try to go to bed early.”

• V-る ようにしている

  • Ongoing habit / current policy:
    “I make it a rule to V,” “I generally try to V (as a habit).”
  • Example:
    毎日運動するようにしています。
    “I make sure to exercise every day.”

In your sentence, 飲むようにしています shows that this is an established, ongoing habit, not just a new resolution.

Does しています here mean the speaker is right now trying to drink water, or is it more general?

Here, しています is the habitual / continuous use of 〜ている, not the “right now” progressive.

〜ている can mean:

1. ongoing action right now
   
   • 今、水を飲んでいます。= I’m drinking water now.
2. a repeated / habitual action
   
   • 毎朝ジョギングをしています。= I (regularly) go jogging every morning.

In 飲むようにしています, the meaning is:

• “I generally make sure to drink water frequently”
  not “I am (at this exact moment) trying to drink water.”

Could I just say 私はこまめに水を飲みます instead? How would the nuance change?

Yes, you can say 私はこまめに水を飲みます and it’s grammatically correct.

Nuance difference:

• 私はこまめに水を飲みます。
  → Neutral statement: “I drink water frequently.”
  (Describes your habit as a fact, without focusing on effort.)

• 私はこまめに水を飲むようにしています。
  → “I make a point of drinking water frequently.”
  (Emphasizes your conscious effort / decision / self-discipline.)

So the original sentence is a bit more like talking about a health habit or something you intentionally do for your well-being.

Why is 水 marked with を and not は? Could I say 水はこまめに飲むようにしています?

In the original:

• 水を飲む
  → を marks 水 as the direct object of 飲む (“drink water”).

If you say:

• 水はこまめに飲むようにしています。

You are:

• making 水 the topic with は,
• and 飲む still has an understood object (水), but grammatically は is acting as topic, not object.

Meaning nuance:

• 水をこまめに飲むようにしています。
  → Neutral: I make sure to drink water frequently.
• 水はこまめに飲むようにしています。
  → “As for water, I make sure to drink it frequently (even if I might not do that with other drinks).”

So yes, it’s possible, but は puts contrast or focus on water in particular.

Is 私 necessary here? Do Japanese people usually say it?

私 is not grammatically required. In natural conversation, many speakers would simply say:

• こまめに水を飲むようにしています。

Japanese frequently drops the subject (especially “I”) when it’s obvious from context.
Using 私:

• can be useful for learners to make the subject clear,
• may sound a bit more formal or emphatic in everyday speech.

In most contexts, omitting 私 is more natural unless you need to contrast it with someone else (e.g., 私は vs 友だちは).

What is the politeness level and how would this change in casual speech?

The sentence is in polite form because of しています (〜しています is the polite 〜ている form).

Polite:

• こまめに水を飲むようにしています。

Casual:

• こまめに水を飲むようにしてる。 (Drop ます, いる → る in casual speech.)

Even more casual variations:

• こまめに水飲むようにしてる。 (dropping を is common in speech)
• こまめに水飲むようにしてんの。 (very colloquial; spoken style)

All of them keep the same core meaning: “I make a point of drinking water frequently.”