Potential Form in Japanese

Overview

The potential form allows you to express ability -- what you can or cannot do. It is the Japanese equivalent of "can" or "be able to" in English. At the B1 level, mastering this form opens up a wide range of practical conversations: talking about your skills, asking about possibilities, and describing what is or is not feasible in a given situation.

Every Japanese verb can be converted into its potential form through a systematic conjugation. Once transformed, the potential verb conjugates as an ichidan (る) verb regardless of the original verb class. This makes subsequent conjugation (past tense, negative, etc.) straightforward.

The potential form is closely related to the passive form in ichidan verbs, since both use the -(ら)れる ending. Understanding this overlap will prepare you for the passive and causative forms that follow.

How It Works

Formation rules

Verb Class	Rule	Dictionary Form	Potential Form
Godan (五段)	Change -u to -e + る	書く (kaku)	書ける (kakeru)
Godan	Change -u to -e + る	話す (hanasu)	話せる (hanaseru)
Godan	Change -u to -e + る	読む (yomu)	読める (yomeru)
Godan	Change -u to -e + る	泳ぐ (oyogu)	泳げる (oyogeru)
Ichidan (一段)	Drop -る, add -られる	食べる (taberu)	食べられる (taberareru)
Ichidan	Drop -る, add -られる	見る (miru)	見られる (mirareru)
Irregular	Special	する (suru)	できる (dekiru)
Irregular	Special	来る (kuru)	来られる (korareru)

ら抜き (ra-nuki): Dropping ら

In casual spoken Japanese, ichidan potential forms often drop the ら:

Standard	Colloquial (ら抜き)
食べられる	食べれる
見られる	見れる
起きられる	起きれる

This is extremely common in everyday speech, especially among younger speakers. In formal writing and exams, the full form with ら is preferred.

Particle choice: が vs. を

The object of a potential verb traditionally takes が instead of を:

Non-potential	Potential
日本語を話す	日本語が話せる
漢字を読む	漢字が読める

In modern Japanese, を is also commonly used with potential forms, particularly in casual speech. Both are acceptable, but が is considered more standard.

Conjugation of potential forms

Since all potential forms behave as ichidan verbs:

Form	Example (書ける)
Polite	書けます
Negative	書けない
Past	書けた
Past polite	書けました

Examples in Context

Japanese	English	Note
日本語が話せます。	I can speak Japanese.	が marks the ability
漢字が読めますか？	Can you read kanji?	Question form
今日は来られません。	I can't come today.	Ichidan-style potential of 来る
ここで泳げます。	You can swim here.	Godan potential
この料理は箸で食べられますか？	Can you eat this dish with chopsticks?	Ichidan potential
明日なら会えます。	If it's tomorrow, I can meet you.	Godan potential of 会う
クレジットカードが使えますか？	Can I use a credit card?	Practical usage
辛い物が食べられません。	I can't eat spicy food.	Negative potential
日本語で説明できますか？	Can you explain in Japanese?	できる (potential of する)
ここから富士山が見えます。	You can see Mt. Fuji from here.	見える (inherent potential)

Common Mistakes

Confusing 見える/聞こえる with 見られる/聞ける

• Wrong: ここから山が見られます。 (for something naturally visible)
• Right: ここから山が見えます。
• Why: 見える and 聞こえる express inherent visibility/audibility (something naturally enters your perception). 見られる and 聞ける express the ability or opportunity to see/hear something.

Using the potential form for non-ability situations

• Wrong: 窓が開けられます。 (meaning "The window will open")
• Right: 窓が開けられます。 (meaning "I can open the window")
• Why: Make sure you actually mean ability. If you mean the window opens by itself, use 窓が開きます.

Forgetting that できる replaces する

• Wrong: 運動がされる (as potential of する)
• Right: 運動ができる
• Why: The potential of する is always できる, not される (which is the passive).

Double potential marking

• Wrong: 食べれられる
• Right: 食べられる or 食べれる (colloquial)
• Why: Pick one form. Do not combine the colloquial ら-dropped form with the full ending.

Usage Notes

The potential form is one of the most frequently used verb forms in Japanese. It appears in everyday situations from ordering food to discussing travel plans. In business contexts, it often appears in polite requests and offers: ご利用いただけます ("You can use this" -- honorific potential).

The ら抜き phenomenon is a notable sociolinguistic feature. While prescriptive grammarians discourage it, it has become the dominant form in casual speech across most of Japan. You should be comfortable recognizing both forms.

Note that some verbs have dedicated "potential" counterparts that are separate words: 見える (can see), 聞こえる (can hear). These are not conjugated forms but independent verbs expressing inherent perceptibility.

Practice Tips

• Practice converting your daily activities into potential statements: "I can cook," "I can drive," "I can't wake up early." This builds automatic conjugation.
• Test yourself with the が/を distinction by rewriting sentences with を-marked objects into potential sentences using が.
• Listen for ら抜き in Japanese media -- dramas, YouTube, podcasts. Notice how common it is and which speakers use it.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Plain/Dictionary Form -- the starting point for potential conjugation
• Next steps: Passive Voice -- shares the -(ら)れる pattern with ichidan verbs
• Next steps: Causative Form -- another advanced verb conjugation building on the same foundations