住む

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 私は東京に住んでいます。▶ —
   I live in Tokyo.
2. どこに住みたいですか。▶ —
   Where would you like to live?

Collocations

Mnemonic

Sumu (住む) is a godan verb — "to live, to reside." Requires the particle ni: "Tokyo ni sunde iru" (live in Tokyo). The resultative form sunde iru carries the present-state reading (parallel to motte iru "own," kekkon shite iru "married"); plain sumu hints at a future start ("will take up residence"). The ~tai desire form gives "doko ni sumitai desu ka?" (where would you like to live?). Cluster: juusho (address, Sino-Japanese), sumai (residence, native, softer), juutakugai (residential district), hikkoshi (moving). Metaphor: kokoro ni sumu (to live in the heart = to inhabit one's memory or feelings), common in poems and novels.

Quick check

1. Natural Japanese for "I live in Tokyo"?

   • "Toukyou ni sunde imasu" — resultative state
   • "Toukyou ni sumimasu" — future / commitment
   • "Toukyou de sumimasu" — particle wrong
   • "Toukyou wo sumimasu" — ungrammatical