事
こと
hepburn koto
thing (abstract), matter, event
Part of speech · noun
Pattern visualization
Examples
- 大事なことです。It is an important matter.
- 行ったことがあります。I have been there.
Collocations
事 (koto, matter)~ことがある (experience)~ことができる (can)~ことにする (decide)~ということ (the fact)
Mnemonic
Koto (事 / こと) is "matter / thing (abstract)" — A + cluster (mono / koto dual abstract system cluster; multi-functional grammar). Pairs with mono: mono concrete / koto abstract / matter / event / experience. 4 grammatical roles: (1) ~koto ga aru experience; (2) ~koto ga dekiru can; (3) ~koto ni suru decide; (4) ~to iu koto fact / indirect quote. Korean il / geos / sageon split and Chinese shi / shiqing / shijian split parallel; Japans mono / koto dual abstract cluster unique.
Quick check
Mono vs koto?