[Grammar] Verbs (動詞)

[pichu655889]

Hello! I'm studying for a Japanese exam next year and I thought, why not share my notes with everyone?
I'm sure there are a thousand more similar guides out there on the internet but hey, it doesn't hurt to add one more!
Do note, however, that these are the notes of a student and may not be entirely accurate in terms of grammatical terms used (Present tense, Past tense that kind of thing) and may contain inaccuracies/misconceptions. If you spot any mistakes feel free to tell me and I hope that these would be helpful to someone!

I intend to add and edit slowly over time as I add on to my notes.

Dictionary Form (辞書形) Verb Stems (語幹) Negative Form (否定形) Te-Form (て形) Ta-Form (た形) Ba-Form (ば形) Tense Next

• This can be thought of as the basic form of verbs. Verbs are split into 3 groups: Group I, Group II and Group III.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form/Plain Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買います (かいます)	buy
  待つ (まつ)	待ちます (まちます)	wait
  治る (なおる)	治ります (なおります)	heal
  読む (よむ)	読みます (よみます)	read
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運びます (はこびます)	carry
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死にます (しにます)	die
  書く (かく)	書きます (かきます)	write
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳ぎます (およぎます)	swim
  話す (はなす)	話します (はなします)	speak

  
  To transform Group I verbs from their Dictionary Form to their Polite Form, replace the -u hiragana at the end of the verb with the -i hiragana of the same column (see hiragana table below), and add ます after that.
  
  
  買う → 買 う + い + ます → 買います
  
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  食べる (たべる)	食べます (たべます)	eat
  起きる (おきる)	起きます (おきます)	wake up

  
  Verbs are generally in Group II if they end with -iru or -eru.
  *However, there are exceptions, such as the verb 帰る (かえる), which ends with -eru but is a Group I verb: 帰る (かえる) → 帰ります (かえります).
  
  To change a Group II verb into its Polite Form, simply replace the る at the end of the verb with ます.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + ます → 食べます
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  する	します	do
  来る (くる)	来ます (きます)	come
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強します (べんきょうします)	study
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってきます (もってきます)	bring

  
  Group III verbs have no pattern in changing forms, and the only way to do so is to memorise their different forms. There are only two however.
  *Do note that the pronunciation of the verbs change.
  
• 
  Verb stems are also important and are used in common expressions such as 食べたい (want to eat).
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Verb Stem
  買う (かう)	買います (かいます)	買い (かい)
  待つ (まつ)	待ちます (まちます)	待ち (まち)
  治る (なおる)	治ります (なおります)	治り (なおり)
  読む (よむ)	読みます (よみます)	読み (よみ)
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運びます (はこびます)	運び (はこび)
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死にます (しにます)	死に (しに)
  書く (かく)	書きます (かきます)	書き (かき)
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳ぎます (およぎます)	泳ぎ (およぎ)
  話す (はなす)	話します (はなします)	話し (はなし)

  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Verb Stem
  食べる (たべる)	食べます (たべます)	食べ (たべ)
  起きる (おきる)	起きます (おきます)	起き (おき)

  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Polite)	Verb Stem
  する	します	し
  来る (くる)	来ます (きます)	来 (き)

  
  Regardless of what Group the verb is in, to extract the verb stem simply remove the ます from its Affirmative Form (Polite).
  
  
  
  Group I: 買う → 買います → 買い
  Group II: 食べる → 食べます → 食べ
  Group III: する → します → し
  
  
  
  
• 
  The Negative Form of verbs imply the opposite of what the Dictionary Form of the verb means, that is:
  
  
  食べる (たべる): Eat
  食べない (たべない): Do/Does not eat
  ​
  
  Group I
  Using the same examples from the Dictionary Form tab,
  
  

  Dictionary Form	Negative Form (Plain)	Negative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買わない (かわない)	買いません (かいません)	don't buy
  待つ (まつ)	待たない (またない)	待ちません (まちません)	don't wait
  治る (なおる)	治らない (なおらない)	治りません (なおりません)	don't heal
  読む (よむ)	読まない (よまない)	読みません (よみません)	don't read
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運ばない (はこばない)	運びません (はこびません)	don't carry
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死なない (しなない)	死にません (しにません)	don't die
  書く (かく)	書かない (かかない)	書きません (かきません)	don't write
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳がない (およがない)	泳ぎません (およぎません)	don't swim
  話す (はなす)	話さない (はなさない)	話しません (はなしません)	don't speak

  
  To transform Group I verbs to their Negative Form (Plain) from their Dictionary Form, replace the -u hiragana with the -a hiragana of the same column and add ない at the end.
  *Note that for verbs ending with う, the う is replaced by わ instead of あ: 買う → 買わない.
  *Also note that the Negative form for the verb ある is ない.
  
  
  読む → 読 む + ま + ない → 読まない
  
  
  To transform Group I verbs to their Negative Form (Polite), replace the -u hiragana at the end of the verb with the -i hiragana of the same column and add ません to the end. Alternatively, replace the す at the end of the corresponding Affirmative Form (Polite) with せん.
  
  
  読む → 読 む + み + ません → 読みません
  読みます → 読みま す + せん → 読みません
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Negative Form (Plain)	Negative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  食べる (たべる)	食べない (たべない)	食べません (たべません)	don't eat
  起きる (おきる)	起きない (おきない)	起きません (おきません)	don't wake up

  
  Transforming a Group II verb to its Negative Form (Plain) is easier. Simply replace the る at the end of the verb with ない.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + ない → 食べない
  
  
  Transforming a Group II verb to its Negative Form (Polite) is also similar. Replace the る at the end of its Dictionary Form with ません or replace the す at the end of its Affirmative Form (Polite) with せん.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + ません → 食べません
  食べます → 食べま す + せん → 食べません
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Negative Form (Plain)	Negative Form (Polite)	Meaning
  する	しない	しません	don't do
  来る (くる)	来ない (こない)	来ません (きません)	don't come
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強しない (べんきょうしない)	勉強しません (べんきょうしません)	don't study
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってこない (もってこない)	持ってきません (もってきません)	don't bring

  
  *Again, do note the changes in pronunciation with the Group III verbs.
  
  -たい Form
  The -たい Form of verbs behave like i-adjectives. To change a -たい verb into its Negative Form, replace the い at the end with く and add ない to the back.
  
  
  食べたい → 食べた い + く + ない → 食べたくない
  
  
  
• 
  The Te-Form of verbs is an important form that can be used to modify or join verbs together, such as in 食べている or 食べてください.
  
  The Te-Form of the verb differs depending on the -u hiragana the verb ends with.
  
  Group I
  

  -u Hiragana	Te-Form	Dictionary Form	Te-Form
  -う	-って	買う (かう)	買って (かって)
  -つ	-って	待つ (まつ)	待って (まって)
  -る	-って	治る (なおる)	治って (なおって)
  -む	-んで	読む (よむ)	読んで (よんで)
  -ぶ	-んで	運ぶ (はこぶ)	運んで (はこんで)
  -ぬ	-んで	死ぬ (しぬ)	死んで (しんで)
  -く	-いて	書く (かく)	書いて (かいて)
  -ぐ	-いで	泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳いで (およいで)
  -す	-して	話す (はなす)	話して (はなして)

  
  To change a Group I verb from its Dictionary Form to its Te-Form, replace the -u hiragana at the end of the verb with its corresponding Te-Form.
  *The verb 行く is an exception. The Te-Form of 行く is instead 行って (and not 行いて).
  
  
  待つ → 待 つ + って → 待って
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Te-Form
  食べる (たべる)	食べて (たべて)
  起きる (おきる)	起きて (おきて)

  
  Similar to the Affirmative (Polite) and Negative (Polite) forms, to transform Group II verbs to their Te-Form replace the る at the end of the verb with て.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + て → 食べて
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Te-Form
  する	して
  来る (くる)	来て (きて)
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強して (べんきょうして)
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってきて (もってきて)

  
  *Note the pronunciation changes.
  
  Negative Form/-たい Form
  If you have noticed, the Negative Form (Plain) and -たい form of verbs end with a い instead. These verb forms behave like an i-adjective (い形容詞). Regardless of Group, to change the Negative Form (Plain)/-たい Form of the verb to its Te-Form, replace the い at the end of the verb with くて.
  
  
  
  (Negative Form (Polite))
  Group I: 読まない → 読まな い + くて → 読まなくて
  Group II: 食べない → 食べな い + くて → 食べなくて
  Group III: しない → しな い + くて → しなくて
  
  (-たい Form)
  Group I: 読みたい → 読みた い + くて → 読みたくて
  Group II: 食べたい → 食べた い + くて → 食べたくて
  Group III: したい → した い + くて → したくて
  
  
  
• 
  The Ta-Form of verbs is similar to the Te-Form of verbs in that it is simply the てchanged to た.
  (As such, I got lazy and just copied the contents of the Te-Form tab over)
  
  The Ta-Form of the verb differs depending on the -u hiragana the verb ends with.
  
  Group I
  

  -u Hiragana	Ta-Form	Dictionary Form	Ta-Form
  -う	-った	買う (かう)	買った (かった)
  -つ	-った	待つ (まつ)	待った (まった)
  -る	-った	治る (なおる)	治った (なおった)
  -む	-んだ	読む (よむ)	読んだ (よんだ)
  -ぶ	-んだ	運ぶ (はこぶ)	運んだ (はこんだ)
  -ぬ	-んだ	死ぬ (しぬ)	死んだ (しんだ)
  -く	-いた	書く (かく)	書いた (かいた)
  -ぐ	-いだ	泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳いだ (およいだ)
  -す	-した	話す (はなす)	話した (はなした)

  
  To change a Group I verb from its Dictionary Form to its Ta-Form, replace the -u hiragana at the end of the verb with its corresponding Ta-Form.
  *The verb 行く is an exception. The Ta-Form of 行く is instead 行った (and not 行いた).
  
  
  待つ → 待 つ + った → 待った
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Ta-Form
  食べる (たべる)	食べた (たべた)
  起きる (おきる)	起きた (おきた)

  
  Similar to the Affirmative (Polite) and Negative (Polite) forms, to transform Group II verbs to their Ta-Form replace the る at the end of the verb with た.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + た → 食べた
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Ta-Form
  する	した
  来る (くる)	来た (きた)
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強した (べんきょうした)
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってきた (もってきた)

  
  *Note the pronunciation changes.
  
  Negative Form/-たい Form
  If you have noticed, the Negative Form (Plain) and -たい form of verbs end with a い instead. These verb forms behave like an i-adjective (い形容詞). Regardless of Group, to change the Negative Form (Plain)/-たい Form of the verb to its Ta-Form, replace the い at the end of the verb with かった.
  
  
  
  (Negative Form (Polite))
  Group I: 読まない → 読まな い + かった → 読まなかった
  Group II: 食べない → 食べな い + かった → 食べなかった
  Group III: しない → しな い + かった → しなかった
  
  (-たい Form)
  Group I: 読みたい → 読みた い + かった → 読みたかった
  Group II: 食べたい → 食べた い + かった → 食べたかった
  Group III: したい → した い + かった → したかった
  
  
  
• 
  The Ba-Form of verbs suggests possibility, if. For example, 食べれば means "if (I/you) eat".
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Ba-Form	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買えば (かえば)	if (I) buy
  待つ (まつ)	待てば (まてば)	if (I) wait
  治る (なおる)	治れば (なおれば)	if (it) heals
  読む (よむ)	読めば (よめば)	if (I) read
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運べば (はこべば)	if (I) carry
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死ねば (しねば)	if (I) die
  書く (かく)	書けば (かけば)	if (I) write
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳げば (およげば)	if (I) swim
  話す (はなす)	話せば (はなせば)	if (I) speak

  
  To transform Group I verbs to their Ba-Form from their Dictionary Form, replace the -u hiragana at the end of the verb's Dictionary Form with its corresponding -e hiragana of the same column and add ば at the end.
  
  
  書く → 書 く + け + ば → 書けば
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Ba-Form	Meaning
  食べる (たべる)	食べれば (たべれば)	if (I) eat
  起きる (おきる)	起きれば (おきれば)	if (I) wake up

  
  To change Group II verbs into their Ba-Form from the Dictionary Form, change the る at the end of the verb to れ and add a ば.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + れ + ば → 食べれば
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Ba-Form	Meaning
  する	すれば	if (I) do
  来る (くる)	来れば (くれば)	if (I) come
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強すれば (べんきょうすれば)	if (I) study
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってくれば (もってくれば)	if (I) bring

  
  Similar to Group II verbs, change the る to れば.
  
• 
  I. Past Tense
  
  
  The past tense of Plain Form verbs is quite simply their Ta-Form. There isn't much use in re-listing the Ta-Forms of verbs so just check out that tab.
  

  Dictionary Form	Affirmative Form (Past)	Meaning	Negative Form (Past)	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買った (かった)	bought	買わなかった (かわなかった)	did not buy
  食べる (たべる)	食べた (たべた)	ate	食べなかった (たべなかった)	did not eat
  する	した	did	しなかった	did not
  食べたい (たべたい)	食べたかった (たべたかった)	wanted to eat	食べたくなかった (たべたくなかった)	did not want to eat

  
  However, it is a little different for the Polite form of verbs:
  

  Affirmative Form (Present)	Affirmative Form (Past)	Meaning	Negative Form (Past)	Meaning
  買います (かいます)	買いました (かいました)	bought	買いませんでした (かいませんでした)	did not buy
  食べます (たべます)	食べました (たべました)	ate	食べませんでした (たべませんでした)	did not eat
  します	しました	did	しませんでした	did not
  食べたいです (たべたいです)	食べたかったです (たべたかったです)	wanted to eat	食べたくなかったです (たべたくなかったです)	did not want to eat

  
  I did not include the Dictionary Form of the verbs in the above table because I feel it is easier to start with their Affirmative Forms (Polite).
  From the Affirmative Form (Present) the to Affirmative Form (Past), replace the す at the end with した.
  
  

  買います → 買いま す + した → 買いました

  
  
  For the Negative Form (Past), replace the す at the end of the verb with せんでした. Or, as some might have noticed, add でした to the end of the Polite Negative Form of the verb.
  
  

  買います → 買いま す + せんでした → 買いませんでした
  買いません → 買いません + でした → 買いませんでした

  
  
  Finally, the -たい form of verbs act like i-adjectives and are a little more complicated.
  Affirmative (Polite): Add です to the Ta-Form of the verb.
  
  

  食べたい → 食べたかった(Ta-Form) + です → 食べたかったです

  
  
  Negative (Polite): Add です to end of the Ta-form of the Negative Form of the verb.
  
  

  食べたい → 食べたくない(Negative Form) → 食べたくなかった(Ta-Form) + です → 食べたくなかったです

  
  ​
• 
  Click for more:
  
  • Volitional Form (意志形)
  • Potential Form (可能形)
  • Passive Form (受身形)
  • Causative Form (使役形)
  • Passive Causative Form (使役受身形)
  • Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (他動詞・自動詞)
  • Respectable Form (敬語)

Hiragana Table (From anndundon.com):

*Note: The hiragana ki is き and sa さ in this font.

Spoiler: UPDATE 01/06/2014:

I will no longer be including an English translation as meanings may change according to context and do not always remain the same. I will however still continue to provide simplified examples of when a verb form may be used.

 

[~dreamer~]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

the only problem i see is the table from wikipedia
entries -we and -wi are obsolete
さ is 3 strokes, not 2
き is 4 strokes, not 3

 

[FinalPyre]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

If you are not already using it, use anki.

@dreamer, you are correct, but strokes vary in cursive (not that it really matters). we and wi still rarely do get used, so it doesn't hurt to know them.

 

[~dreamer~]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

memory is limited, you're better off learning something else then trying to memorize something that is not used (unless you try and read ancient books or something)

A better hiragana table
http://www.kkjn.jp/h1.htm

katakana table
http://www.kkjn.jp/k1.htm

(i remember there was a site where it showed the stroke animation and the pronunciation. that was long ago though...)
(i'll edit this if i find it)

Resource for practicing hiragana and katakana
Hiragana sheet
http://happylilac.net/hiragana-50.html

Katakana sheet
http://happylilac.net/katakana-50.html

 

[FinalPyre]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

Yes. It has been estimated that our memory may have a limit of around (as a relative estimation of quantity) 200TB of storage. I would hate to lose those few bytes worth.

Just to note, people still use them in pop culture from time to time. You may know of a character "Tewi" from Touhou, as a matter of fact.

 

[~dreamer~]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

learning those characters make as much sense as learning ancient english words when learning English. Yes, you might encounter them here and there, mostly in certain names and such, but don't realistically expect it to be used in newspapers or in the social media. really, you're just increasing the amount of stuff to learn with next to 0 benefit, so why bother..?

 

[FinalPyre]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

Hmm I suppose. But if something takes such an insignificant amount of effort to learn, and may come in useful: why not?

 

[pichu655889]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

In writing さ is indeed written with 3 strokes and き with 4, but it seems that many fonts (at least those that I've seen) use those shown in the table. And as you said, ゐ and ゑ are not used anymore. I might make my own table in word :/

 

[FinalPyre]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

In writing さ is indeed written with 3 strokes and き with 4, but it seems that many fonts (at least those that I've seen) use those shown in the table. And as you said, ゐ and ゑ are not used anymore. I might make my own table in word :/

Some people will write them connected just to write fast (like our cursive). But in learning making them with the proper strokes is good form, I suppose. :)

 

[pichu655889]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

There I've changed the table.

It's just that I've seen people on the forums asking what the character さ (with 2 strokes) is.

 

[~dreamer~]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

much better ^^
might i suggest adding a volitional and potential form of the verb? =}

 

[pichu655889]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

Yes I know I'm still working on it :)

Aside from the tabs already there, I intend to add

Volitional Form (意志形)
Potential Form (可能形)
Passive Form (受身形)
Causative Form (使役形)
Passive Causative Form (使役受身形)
Intransitive and Transitive Verbs (自動詞・他動詞)
Respectable Form (尊敬語・謙譲語)

 

[Checkmate]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

If you need help for a second post of your post in below this post, please let me know. I can re-number around.

 

[~dreamer~]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

I remember tryng something like this (that is, a brief summary of the conjugations and what-not)
needless to say, it was a mess. i'm sure it'll be very useful for those starting out, and as a refresher for those who already learned ^^

 

[pichu655889]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

I remember tryng something like this (that is, a brief summary of the conjugations and what-not)
needless to say, it was a mess. i'm sure it'll be very useful for those starting out, and as a refresher for those who already learned ^^

I do realize that this alone won't have much meaning, one still has to be able to use the different form of verbs in sentences which is a whole new story about adverbs and conjunctions etc. :P

But as a quick reference I hope this helps (they are my exam notes after all)

sure, just post the post you want it to be, then notify me, and tell me which post should be renumbered into 2.

Ok will do, thanks for the help! ^_^

 

[pichu655889]

Re: Grammar: Verbs (動詞)

Ah that looks much better now! I'm assuming the gaps were from hidden divs or something similar?
Unfortunately things still look weird once the tabs go on to the second row

Multi-quote works fine, but the post number (in the top-right hand corner of posts) overlaps the multi-quote button, that's the bug.
Things still work fine if I click on "Reply with Quote" for each post and copy them into Notepad or something though.

 

[pichu655889]

Previous Volitional Form (意志形) Potential Form (可能形) Passive Form (受身形) Causative Form (使役形) Passive Causative Form (使役受身形) Next

• 
  Click for more:
  
  • Dictionary Form (辞書形)
  • Verb Stem (語幹)
  • Negative Form (否定形)
  • Te-Form (て形)
  • Ta-Form (た形)
  • Ba-Form (ば形)
  • Tense
• 
  The Volitional Form of verbs is similar to Let's. 食べよう means Let's eat! Of course, there will be subtle differences in meaning depending on the context it is used in.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Plain Form	Polite Form	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買おう (かおう)	買いましょう (かいましょう)	let's buy
  待つ (まつ)	待とう (まとう)	待ちましょう (まちましょう)	let's wait
  治る (なおる)	治ろう (なおろう)	治りましょう (なおおりましょう)	let's heal
  読む (よむ)	読もう (よもう)	読みましょう (よみましょう)	let's read
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運ぼう (はこぼう)	運びましょう (はこびましょう)	let's carry
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死のう (しのう)	死にましょう (しにましょう)	let's die
  書く (かく)	書こう (かこう)	書きましょう (かきましょう)	let's write
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳ごう (およごう)	泳ぎましょう (およぎましょう)	let's swim
  話す (はなす)	話そう (はなそう)	話しましょう (はなしましょう)	let's talk

  
  Some of the above examples do not make much sense (such as Let's die or Let's heal) but you should get the idea.
  To transform a Group I verb into its Volitional Form, change the -u hiragana at the end with the corresponding -o hiragana of the same column and add う at the end.
  
  
  探す → 探 す + そ + う → 探そう
  
  
  For the Polite Form of Volitional Form verbs, starting with the Affirmative Form (Polite) of the verb, replace the す with しょう.
  
  
  探す → 探します(Polite Form) → 探しま す + しょう → 探しましょう
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Plain Form	Polite Form	Meaning
  食べる (たべる)	食べよう (たべよう)	食べましょう (たべましょう)	let's eat
  起きる (おきる)	起きよう (おきよう)	起きましょう (おきましょう)	let's wake up

  
  Again, some verbs may seem weird in their Volitional Form.
  To change a Group II verb into its Volitional Form replace the る at the end with よう.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + よう → 食べよう
  
  
  For its Polite Form, similar to Group I verbs, replace the す at the end of verbs with しょう.
  
  
  食べる → 食べます(Polite Form) → 食べま す + しょう → 食べましょう
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Plain Form	Polite Form	Meaning
  する	しよう	しましょう	let's do
  来る (くる)	来よう (こよう)	来ましょう (きましょう)	let's come
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強しよう (べんきょうしよう)	勉強しましょう (べんきょうしましょう)	let's study
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってこよう (もってこよう)	持ってきましょう (もってきましょう)	let's bring

  
  *Note the change in pronunciation.
  
• 
  The Potential Form of verbs suggests a possibility or ability to do things. 読める would mean I can read.
  The Potential Form of verbs acts like Group II verbs (you might notice that they end with -eru) and therefore I shall not include the Polite Forms here. Refer to the Dictionary Form tab for more information.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Potential Form	Meaning
  買う (かう)	買える (かえる)	(I) can buy
  待つ (まつ)	待てる (まてる)	(I) can wait
  治る (なおる)	治れる (なおれる)	(I) can heal
  読む (よむ)	読める (よめる)	(I) can read
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運べる (はこべる)	(I) can carry
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死ねる (しねる)	(I) can die
  書く (かく)	書ける (かける)	(I) can write
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳げる (およげる)	(I) can swim
  話す (はなす)	話せる (はなせる)	(I) can speak

  
  To transform Group I verbs into their Potential Form, replace the end -u hiragana with the corresponding -e hiragana of the same column and add る to the end.
  
  
  探す → 探 す + せ + る → 探せる
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Potential Form	Meaning
  食べる (たべる)	食べられる (たべられる)	(I) can eat
  起きる (おきる)	起きられる (おきられる)	(I) can wake up

  
  To transform Group II verbs into their Potential Form, replace the る at the end with られる (try rolling that on your tongue).
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + られる → 食べられる
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Potential Form	Meaning
  する	出来る (できる)	(I) can
  来る (くる)	来られる (こられる)	(I) can come
  勉強する (べんきょうする)	勉強できる (べんきょうできる)	(I) can study
  持ってくる (もってくる)	持ってこられる (もってこられる)	(I) can bring

  
  *Note the pronunciation and kanji changes
  
• 
  The Passive Form of verbs is similar to how it is in English. The subject is at the receiving end of the action.
  Active: Tom ate me → ジョンは私を食べた
  Passive: I was eaten by Tom → 私はジョンに食べられた
  
  As with the Potential Form of verbs, the Passive Form of verbs acts like Group II verbs.
  It may be easy to to confuse the Potential Form and the Causative Form, as they sound very similar.
  An easy way to remember the Potential Form is to remember that of the verb する, which is される. You might notice that all the verbs in their Potential Forms end with -areru. Therefore, try to get the verb to end with -areru when changing it into its Potential Form.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Form
  買う (かう)	買われる (かわれる)
  待つ (まつ)	待たれる (またれる)
  治る (なおる)	治られる (なおられる)
  読む (よむ)	読まれる (よまれる)
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運ばれる (はこばれる)
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死なれる (しなれる)
  書く (かく)	書かれる (かかれる)
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳がれる (およがれる)
  話す (はなす)	話される (はなされる)

  
  To change a Group I verb to its Passive Form, replace the end -u hiragana with the corresponding -a hiragana of the same column and add れる.
  
  
  書く → 書 く + か + れる → 書かれる
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Form
  食べる (たべる)	食べられる (たべられる)
  起きる (おきる)	起きられる (おきられる)

  
  Similar to the Potential Form of Group II verbs, replace the る at the end of the Dictionary Form with られる to obtain its Passive Form.
  *Do note confuse these with the Potential Form of verbs. Look at the context the verb is used in.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + られる → 食べられる
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Form
  する	される
  来る (くる)	来られる (こられる)

  
  *Note the difference in pronunciation.
  
• 
  As it name implies, the Causative Form of a verb indicates that the subject made someone/something do something.
  My girlfriend made me wait → 彼女は私を待たせた
  
  The Causative Form may also be used to seek permission.
  Please let me leave → 帰らせてください
  
  The Causative Form of verbs act like Group II verbs as well.
  You may notice that the Causative Form of verbs sound similar to the Passive Form of verbs. Similar to remembering the Passive Form, you can keep the Causative Form of the verb する, させる, in your head to differentiate between the two Forms. Causative Forms end with -aseru.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Causative Form
  買う (かう)	買わせる (かわせる)
  待つ (まつ)	待たせる (またせる)
  治る (なおる)	治らせる (なおらせる)
  読む (よむ)	読ませる (よませる)
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運ばせる (はこばせる)
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死なせる (しなせる)
  書く (かく)	書かせる (かかせる)
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳がせる (およがせる)
  話す (はなす)	話させる (はなさせる)

  
  To change a Group I verb to its Causative Form, replace the end -u hiragana with the corresponding -a hiragana of the same column and add せる.
  
  
  書く → 書 く + か + せる → 書かせる
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Causative Form
  食べる (たべる)	食べさせる (たべさせる)

  
  While similar to the Passive Form of Group II verbs, replace the る at the end of the Dictionary Form with させる instead to obtain its Causative Form.
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + させる → 食べさせる
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Causative Form
  する	させる
  来る (くる)	来らせる (こらせる)

  
  *Note the difference in pronunciation.
  
• 
  The Passive Causative Form of a verb is simply the Passive Form of the Causative Form of a verb.
  Hence, to obtain the Passive Causative Form of verbs, apply the rules for Passive Form to the Causative Form of a verb. Remember, you would treat the Causative Form of a verb as a Group II verb. However, there is an exception to Group I Passive Causative verbs, where it is "shortened". This does not apply to Group II or III verbs.
  
  Group I
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Causative Form
  買う (かう)	買わされる (かわされる)
  待つ (まつ)	待たされる (またされる)
  治る (なおる)	治らされる (なおらされる)
  読む (よむ)	読まされる (よまされる)
  運ぶ (はこぶ)	運ばされる (はこばされる)
  死ぬ (しぬ)	死なされる (しなされる)
  書く (かく)	書かされる (かかされる)
  泳ぐ (およぐ)	泳がされる (およがされる)
  話す (はなす)	話させられる (はなさせられる)

  
  To change a Group I verb to its Passive Causative Form, first change the verb into its Causative Form, then into its Passive Form, and finally "shorten" it by replacing the せら with さ.
  *Do not "shorten" the verb if it ends with -su because that will become even more of a mouthful.
  
  
  
  書く → 書 く + か + せる → 書かせる
  書かせる → 書かせ る + られる → 書かせられる
  書かせられる → 書かせられる → 書かされる
  
  話す → 話 す + さ + せる → 話させる
  話させる → 話させ る + られる → 話させられる
  話させられる → 話させられる → 話さされる (Do not do this!)
  
  
  
  Group II
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Causative Form
  食べる (たべる)	食べさせられる (たべさせられる)

  
  To change a Group II verb into its Passive Causative Form, first change it into its Causative Form then change its Causative Form into its Passive Form (hence Passive Causative Form).
  
  
  
  食べる → 食べ る + させる → 食べさせる
  食べさせる → 食べさせ る + られる → 食べさせられる
  
  
  
  Group III
  

  Dictionary Form	Passive Causative Form
  する	させられる
  来る (くる)	来させられる (こさせられる)

  
  *Note the difference in pronunciation.
  
• 
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  • Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (他動詞・自動詞)
  • Respectable Form (敬語)

Hiragana Table (From anndundon.com):

*Note: The hiragana ki is き and sa さ in this font.

Spoiler: UPDATE 01/06/2014:

I will no longer be including an English translation as meanings may change according to context and do not always remain the same. I will however still continue to provide simplified examples of when a verb form may be used.