Conjunctions with が or けど

The use of the conjunctive particle けど is pretty much the same as the が particle we saw before in a previous lesson to say "however", "yet", "but", "and" or "although" when connecting two sentences. The only main difference between them is that が may be considered more formal, while けど is more casual; this does not mean it's less polite, it just means it's more common in casual conversations.

As mentioned before, it is important to note that な-adjectives and nouns cannot be attached to が when connecting two sentences; they will always need either だ or です; this holds true for けど as well. The formal forms of です and ます are more common when using が.

• Verb + けど

  ... taberu kedo ...

• い-adjective + けど

  ... kawaii kedo ...

• な-adjective + (だ / です) + けど

  ... kirei (da / desu) kedo ...

• noun + (だ / です) + けど

  ... hana (da / desu) kedo ...

If the noun or な-adjective is already conjugated into a negative form or different tense (e.g: じゃない / でした), then there is no need for an extra だ or です. When using the 〜ます or です forms, both sentences must be in polite form. Do not mix polite and casual speech as this can sound very unnatural.

Connecting sentences

Let's start with two different sentences to see how conjunctions work in Japanese:

1. ポケモンに乗るの好きだ

   pokemon ni noru no suki da

   I like riding Pokemon.

2. じてんしゃも格好いいよね

   jitensha mo kakkoii yo ne

   Bicycles are cool too, right?

If we mark the first sentence with が or けど, we can connect a second sentence to create a contrast between the two by saying something like "however", "yet" or "but". For example:

What is happening here is that the first sentence is the Actual Condition (conditional clause) marked by the conjunctive particle が or けど followed by the second sentence which is the Result (main clause).

※ Example sentence was taken from the game ポケットモンスター Let's Go! (Pokemon Let's Go!).

Understanding Reverse Conditions

A normal condition implies that something is reasonable or expected, for example "If it rains, I'll stay home". After all, if you had planned to relax at the beach and sunbathe but it started raining, it's very reasonable that you'd stay at home instead.

A reverse condition is when the relation between the actual conditions (circumstances or facts) and the result seem unexpected. For example "Even if it rains, I'll still go to the beach". This goes against what is typically expected. Normally, you wouldn't consider going to the beach if it's raining.

In the next example, the act of wanting to study is the actual condition marked by けど followed by the main clause where the result of it is found to be difficult.

Normally, you would expect someone who wants to study to actually proceed with it despite the difficulty, not to give up because it's too hard for them. This creates a contrast between the desire to study and the difficulty of the task that is expected.

Creating Contrast

With the concept of reverse conditions in mind, が and けど highlights contrasting ideas very similar to how "but" and "however" work in English.

For example, let's say that you really love swimming but want to highlight something you also dislike about it (opposites) or that you like the ocean but want to hightlight the fact that you like the mountains more (contradictory). Here, the result goes against what is expected of the actual condition.

※ Example sentence (1) and (2) were taken from the game ポケットモンスター Let's Go! (Pokemon Let's Go!).

けど Without Adversative Implications

While が and けど may be seen as displaying contrast that are opposite or conflicting between the two sentences, this is not always the case. Two connecting sentences do not always need to be opposites ("warm" vs "cold") or contradict each other ("good game" vs "bad graphics").

It may be that two sentences actually compliment each other, for example, let's say that your friend had been to a cherry blossom viewing and wanted to compliment on how pretty the cherry blossoms were, a conjunction such as "and" would be much more appropriate here.

Here, the condition is that your friend "went to see the cherry blossoms" and the result was they thought "they were very pretty"; this may seem odd as it doesn't really fit the concept of Reverse Conditions we had covered about earlier. After all, you might have expected "very pretty" as a reasonable result.

What is actually happening here is that rather than indicating a contrast or reverse condition, it is providing additional context to the main idea. The first sentence marked by が or けど is the context or topic. This is what makes it different to how "but" and "however" work in English.

Just remember that the topic marked by the conjunctive が or けど must be in a verbal form. This is because these particles are used to connect sentences or clauses together and the topic that follows them generally functions as a verb or verbal phrase.

You cannot simply use a noun phrase using the nominalisation の particle and the topic は particle instead of が or けど as the topic because this would create a more abstract or general statement.

For example, if you were to say 「桜を見に行ったのはとてもきれいだった」, it would imply a more general statement about going to see the cherry blossoms, rather than directly stating that you actually went and saw them ("As for the thing about going to see the cherry blossoms, it was very beautiful").

Providing Context

Sometimes, you just don't want to be too straightforward or direct when asking someone something, for example, instead of saying something like "Can you lend me 100 yen?", you may want to first provide a reason as to why you are asking, such as "I don't have enough money, can you lend me 100 yen?". As you can see, using the English "but" here wouldn't make much sense.

けど is simply marking the topic of the sentence to provide context of what is being asked of. This makes requests sound less confrontational and act as a thoughtful gesture by explaining why you are asking.

It's also very common to hear or see the explanatory の particle being used such as んだけど or のですが, since you are providing an explanation as to why you are asking. This should also be done when talking about something that is new to the listener.

※ Example sentence (2) was taken from the game 妖怪ウォッチ (Youkai Watch).

※ Example sentence (1) and (3) was taken from the game ポケットモンスター Let's Go! (Pokemon Let's Go!).

Ending a Sentence with けど

Unlike the English language, Japanese is a highly contextual language. It is said that "The longer and more vague it is, the more polite it is", the vague part is referring to the fact that Japanese people tend to avoid being too straightforward or direct but instead purposely leave sentences unfinished, only providing context to give a hint or clue to something indirectly without actually saying it.

In English, sentences with a conjunction generally cannot stand alone but in Japanese, ending a sentence with けど provides the listener with context allowing them to respond in their own way, giving them more flexibility in their response; this also makes it sound less confrontational and expresses uncertainty.

It's important to know that you cannot simply add けど at the end of every sentence. Doing so can sound very childish or even make yourself sound unreliable.

— Being polite and less confrontational

Sometimes, what you say may come across as quite direct but adding けど at the end has the effect of softening that statement, making it less confrontational. It provides those you are talking to with a hint or clue about what you want to say without being too straightforward.

Let's say you have an appointment and upon making your way to the front desk, the receptionist asks "Do you have an appointment?", you may respond with something like:

Since you are only providing the context and not anything else, the receptionist can respond in their own way like: "Take a seat and he'll see you soon" or "Sorry, Oomiya-san is not able to see you today".

By ending with けど, you are expressing that there's more you may want to say but you're leaving it to the listener to decide how to respond in a way that is more convenient to them. For example, you may finish with "Is he available?" but there's a chance the receptionist may want to ask you something else first or provide other kind of information you may need to know.

Now, how about making an appointment? Instead of stating when you want the appointment, with who, the reason or such, you can just leave it vague and open-ended by saying "I'd like to make an appointment" and let the other person decide what to say next.

In this example, the receptionist could then reply with something like "Sorry, we are not able to take any appointments right now", "What is it for?", "Do you have a preferred day and time?", "Mr. Oomiya can see you today at 2 o'clock", "I can book you for tomorrow at 1 o'clock" and so on.

You may think of this use of けど like a conversational baton; you are giving a reason why you're asking and then passing the conversation on to the listener.

Without けど, it sounds like a straightforward statement and is often spoken this way when the speaker is confident about something. It may also sound more forceful or assertive. For example, the speaker is sure of what they want and is not seeking permission.

With けど, the directness of the statement is softened and is often used when the speaker is less confident about something. For example: the speaker is not sure of what is appropriate to say or ask next. Maybe the speaker is not sure if they are able to make an appointment in the first place; after all, what makes them think they will just get one even if it's not possible?

— Express uncertainty

Imagine you wanted to help someone who seems to be upset about something but you're not too sure of the best way to go about it so you turn to your friend wondering if they have any ideas. Instead of being too straightforward saying "I want to help (him/her) somehow", you can express your uncertainty and lack of confidence by adding けど at the end.

Make sure that you really are uncertain about something before adding けど; if you are really sure and confident about something or you are expected to know something, it's best not to use けど in this way.

For example, let's say there's an event coming up soon but your friend cannot remember when it is. You only saw the poster once or twice but since it didn't attract your attention at the time, you're not too sure about it either, then you think you remember that it said it'd be on Thursday so you say:

While it may sound like you are unreliable or lack confidence in English, it is very common in Japanese when you want to express that you are genuinely unsure and want to reduce the responsibility of spreading misinformation. If you were suppose to know, then it can sound rude and unreliable.

Try not to overuse けど, though. There are other ways of expressing uncertainty without sounding abrupt like using filler words such as あの or えと and such. Even then, overusing these may make you sound bad a speaking or even lacking in confidence.

— Express criticism or say no

Japanese people tend to avoid being too direct and this is also the same with expressing disagreement or criticism. You can end a statement with けど to provide only the context and hope the listener can take the hint or at least read between the lines.

As mentioned before, by ending with けど, you are expressing that there is more you want to say but in this case, you are leaving it to the listener to take the hint. Not only does it sound less confrontational but also makes disagreements and criticisms sound less forceful and aggressive.

Let's say that you are the owner of a small shop that is about to close for the day. A customer approaches you and asks if they can leave the items they wish to buy on hold for 20 minutes until they get back. Since you don't want to stay open any longer than you need to be, you may say:

Without explicitly saying no or telling them that they can't, you are politely providing the customer with the hint that it isn't possible. After all, maybe the customer didn't realise you'll be closing very soon.

By doing so, you are respecting the customer's request while also ensuring that they are aware of the limited time remaining. The customer should take the hint and decide how to react in a way that is more convenient to them. Maybe they'll pay now and take it with them, maybe they'll come back tomorrow or maybe they'll decided they won't buy anything since it'll be inconvenient to them, who knows.

Sometimes, you may make a criticism or complaint about something but don't want to sound aggressive or like you are looking for an argument. For example, you asked someone to write a report but their choice of words and phrasing ended up being a little difficult to read:

Here, it is obvious that because it's hard to read, it should be rewritten so it's easier to understand. With the use of けど and not explicitly stating that it should be rewritten, the criticism becomes less forceful. Just be careful with this since the listener may just use your use of けど and say "But what?" in disagreement of what you just said. You might want to rephrase it or keep your opinions to yourself.

It may sound passive aggressive in English but indirectness in Japanese is considered more polite. The more indirect it is, the more polite it is. The more direct it is, the more rude or offending it may become. Being indirect can also make it more vague, leaving other possibilities open to interpretation.

— To emphasise a statement

As mentioned before, Japanese people tend to avoid being too straightforward or direct and even when emphasising a statement or making a point of something, you will still try to be as vague as you can.

Emphasising a statement can still comes across as quite strong even with けど. When making a point, it is similar to saying "you know" kind of like how we saw with the sentence ending particle よ but with the nuance that it sounds softer because you are leaving the listener the flexibility to interpret what you said.

For example, your friend, knowing how much work you have remaining and how busy you are, keeps asking if you'll join them for a drink later. It eventually annoys you since there's a deadline and this work must be handed in tomorrow morning so you say:

By adding けど, you are softening the statement slightly, making it less direct and confrontational while still making a point that your friend should understand your situation and hopefully respect your decision.

Now imagine a different situation where your friend invites you out to a restaurant but when they mention which restaurant, it's one you know of and it's quite expensive too. You don't feel like outright turning them down but you know there's no way you're going to be able to afford the food and wine so you say:

Here, you are giving your friend the hint that because it's expensive, you're not sure about the idea without directly saying whether you still want to go or if you'll turn the invitation down. Maybe they'll suggest some other place that's more affordable instead? Turns out, your friend offers to pay for you as a treat for helping them out of a difficult situation the other day.

— For subtle requests

Since ending with けど allows the listener to respond in a way that is convenient to them, it can make requests, favours and even asking for permission sound more subtle and less pushy.

For example, your colleagues suggest the idea of going out together for a meal but you don't have enough money until you next get paid. You could ask them to lend you the money but that sounds too direct. While you could also provide context like we saw before ("I don't have any money, can you lend me some?"), it may still sound rather pushy.

In a situation like this, you could just say "I don't have any money..." and let your colleagues respond however they want, hoping that maybe they will take the hint to offer to help you without directly asking them to lend you money.

Maybe they'll suggest waiting another day until you get paid. Maybe tonight is the only chance they'll have for a long while and apologise that you won't be able to join. Who knows the circumstances but it's better than putting them on the spot and outright saying that you want someone to lend you the money, right?

— Don't overuse けど

With everything we have covered so far about the uses of が and けど, it should be clear now why it's best to avoid using it too much. While it may make what you say sound more polite, it can also make you sound unreliable, unclear or lacking in confidence. It can even imply that the listener should catch on to what you are trying to say and make them feel like they need to respond.

※ In these sentences, が and けど can be used interchangeably. The use of が with forms of です can make them sound more formal, useful for distancing yourself from the listener.

※ Text in ( Parentheses ) are not part of the translation, just a possible suggestion of what the unspoken second sentence could be in a real situation depending on the context.

Variations of けど

けど is actually the shortened form of けれども and shares the same meaning except for the change in formality. Remember that phrase "The longer and more vague it is, the more polite it is"? The "longer" part refers to the non-contracted forms of words or phrases such as どうもありがとうございます instead of just どうも or ありがとう by themselves.

けれども is the most polite version with けれど and けども being slightly less formal but not quite informal followed by the least formal けど, most common in casual conversations.

Possibly the best way to think of this from an English point of view is how in casual speech you will likely say words such as "won't", "who'd", "we're" and so on instead of "will not", "who would", "we are" as such in formal writing (unless you were emphasising a statement when speaking casually by being formal to create distance and possibly sound rude).

Additional Notes

Related Lessons and References

Here is a list of other pages as a reference of what else you may be interested in reading: