ABSTRACT
Certain nouns, such as books and cars, describe concrete objects, while others, such as love and peace, describe abstract concepts. This distinction between concrete and abstract entities is observed in many areas of Japanese grammar. This chapter discusses the use of two very frequently used expressions: no and koto. The Japanese pronoun no and the abstract noun koto have functions similar to one and what. The noun koto matter is an abstract counterpart of the pronoun no. While the pronoun no stands for a concrete object, such as a train or a map, the noun koto stands for an abstract idea or significant fact. It often appears with verbs such as kiku hear, wakaru learn, shiraberu investigate, and okoru happen. Grammar points are followed by contextualized examples and exercises which allow students to reinforce and consolidate their learning.
