adjectives/past tense?

mac123

can anyone tell me how to put na adjectives into the past tense, both positive and negative?
massugu for example?
thanks.

Giruilla

mac123 wrote: »

can anyone tell me how to put na adjectives into the past tense, both positive and negative?
massugu for example?
thanks.

if you're using massugu as an adjective (more commonly used as an adverb i think),
you can say,

massugu datta - (was straigth/honest)
massugu ja nakatta - (wasnt straight/honest)

mac123

thanks for the reply!
so you just add datta or ja nakatta?
shinsetsu datta = was kind?

clartharlear

As you know, there are two types of adjectives in Japanese - i and na.
Shinsetsu is one of the "na" ones, so the past is shinsetsu datta - just use the past tense copula.
If it was a "i" one, such as oishii, it'd be oishikatta da - the final i changes to katta and the present tense copula is used.

Although I almost only ever use polite Japanese, so I'd say しんせつでした and おいしかったです!

Lantis

It helps if you think of -na adjectives as nouns pretending to be adjectives. (noun adjectives)
So your conjugations work the same as if it were a noun you were using - だ or です in whatever form you want it to be.

FruitLover

clartharlear wrote: »

If it was a "i" one, such as oishii, it'd be oishikatta da - the final i changes to katta and the present tense copula is used.

You'd commonly leave out the copula in natural speech (e.g. 'kinou no asagohan wa oishikatta')

clartharlear

Yeah, you're totally right. As I said, I usually use desu anyway, so that's why I thought oishikatta da sounded odd!

Dont be at yourself

oishikatta da is incorrect, as far as I know. The 'da' is completely redundant, as 'oishikatta' functions as both the verb and adjective.

'Oishikatta desu' is correct, but the only function of desu is indicating politeness - the tense etc. is indicated by the conjugation of the adjective.