こと
Meanings
Noun
Usually written in kana
1. thing; matter
2. incident; occurrence; event; something serious; trouble; crisis
3. circumstances; situation; state of affairs
4. work; business; affair
5. after an inflectable word, creates a noun phrase indicating something the speaker does not feel close to
Suffix
Usually written in kana
6. nominalizing suffix
7. pretending to ...; playing make-believe ...
Noun
Usually written in kana
8. alias; also known as; otherwise known as; or
as AことB (A = alias, B = real name)
9. necessity; need
as 〜ことはない
10. you should ...; I advise that you ...; it's important to ...
as 〜ことだ
Kanji used
occurence
Pitch accent
Top 500
Used in vocabulary (178 in total)
to have been decided (so) that; to have been arranged (so) that; to be the result (of); to be the outcome; to be the reason (for)
accident; incident; trouble; circumstances; reasons
(for something) to have occurred; to have done (something); (for something) to happen on occasion
Examples (200 in total)
I did what I could.
It's a difficult matter.
That's not what I meant.
I'm thinking about my children.
Have you heard about the accident?
It's too late to do anything about that now.
Don't meddle in other people's affairs.
Does that kind of thing happen often?
Did you inform your teacher of this?
He thinks of nothing but himself.
Is that a bad thing?
I'm thinking about you.
What are you doing that for?
Could you please tell me the truth?
There's nothing to worry about.
Do you believe him?
Forget I said anything.
To my surprise, she was alive.
Even a child can understand it.
Even children can understand it.
I can't tell him that.
This is what we want to know.
That's quite another thing.
This is really a very strange affair.
Do you think this is fun?
You can't do two things at once.
I decided to study every day.
That is how it happened.
Please don't worry about us.
I know that you're busy.
I can do a lot of things.
You can say whatever you want to.
Always do what is right.
Don't say such a thing again.
Safety is the most important thing.
To live properly is to learn.
Waking up is the opposite of going to sleep.
I can't help thinking about the future.
Everyone makes mistakes.
I've heard a lot about you.
Crying is an expression of grief.
He carried out what he had promised.
What you were taught is wrong.
They say that seeing is believing.
I have nothing to do with this matter.
It is a great honor to be invited.
Oh, don't worry about that.
I can but wait.
Those who know him like him.
I'll tell you the truth.
I can't understand what you're saying.
He doesn't understand what you say.
The story turned out to be true.
What is it that you really want to say?
I had a feeling something bad was about to happen.
You must think of your family.
He has a lot of things to do.
Such a strange thing is not likely to happen.
The problem is that you're too young.
Does he know that you love him?
Soldiers are used to danger.
Her job is to type.
The important thing is to listen carefully.
I am glad that everything has ended up this way.
It's my business to investigate such things.
There's nothing that cannot be done with money in this world.
She can't have said such a thing.
I couldn't understand what the president said then.
You are old enough to understand this.
She informed me of her departure.
I hope that he isn't deceiving me.
We made fun of him about this.
It is necessary to do some exercise every day.
My hobby is reading comics.
It is foolish of you to say such a thing.
I found it difficult to understand what he was saying.
I have no intention of meddling in your affairs.
I lied to my girlfriend about my age.
The teacher permitted him to go home.
It is good to be kind to others.
I'm not in the least afraid of it.
There is no telling what may happen next year.
It is bold of you to say such a thing.
How did you come to know this?
Having no will is the worst handicap.
It is difficult to shoot a bird flying in the air.
You can't mix oil and water.
I don't like arguing.
There's probably very little I can do.
Few know the truth of the matter.
I still don't really understand what he said.
This is all I can do for you.
The question is who will do it.
They may not know anything about this.
Listen carefully to what I am going to tell you.
What kind of a person does something like that?
I don't have to explain myself to you!
Nobody believes what I say.
To my surprise, there were no people in the village.
I'm very ashamed of myself about what I've done.
I couldn't understand anything that he said.
Judging from his expression, he is not telling the truth.
What he said is by no means true.
I think it's important to tell him the facts.
I've never heard of such a story before.
I will make it clear that I won't come again.
I know that money isn't everything.
You must be a fool to do such a thing.
I've heard a lot about that, too.
I couldn't anticipate that would happen.
I would never question his honesty.
It is wrong for a man to conceal things from his wife.
I regret not having bought that house.
It was entirely by chance that I found out what he was doing.
I believe whatever he says.
I expect you to work harder.
There is no knowing what will happen next.
This boy denied having broken the window.
What did you say in relation to what happened yesterday?
He forgot that he bought her a present.
Man is the only animal that can talk.
I wish I had the courage to speak about my feelings.
"Leave me alone," she said angrily.
What they told you is not true.
Is he so foolish as to believe that?
I like to travel alone.
He might say something ambiguous again.
You can't be at two places at once.
It took a long time to take in what she was saying.
We are all looking forward to seeing you.
They stressed protection of the environment.
We considered going, but finally decided against it.
He mistook me for my twin brother.
I believe that people tend to focus on the bad.
Who broke the window? Tell the truth.
As far as I'm concerned, things are going well.
I have no time to explain this in detail.
You must learn to obey instructions.
There is no doubt about his ability.
No matter what may come, I will do my duty.
Does your mother know about this?
Listen well to what I say.
What strikes me most about her is her innocence.
I didn't understand what the writer was trying to say.
In this regard, I agree with you.
She made up her mind to try again.
I'm having trouble reading the letters on the monitor.
The cat chased the mouse, but couldn't catch it.
To stand on your own feet means to be independent.
I pretended not to understand what he was saying.
Do you have anything to say in connection with this?
There is a certain amount of truth in what he's saying.
Had I known that, I wouldn't have said such a thing to her.
I didn't tell him the truth for fear he would get angry.
The boy chose to stay with his mother.
You just have to do as you're told.
Be quiet and listen to me.
Everything depends on what you will do.
I decided on telling her of my love.
The question is who made that mistake.
What I'm about to say will answer your question.
I'm prepared to do anything to protect freedom.
Ignore what he said. He was only joking.
This is very important. Yet no one talks about it.
The same thing could be said about many other people.
What reason did he give for being so late?
It is not rare for him to make such a mistake.
Strange to say, he met someone who was said to be dead.
My parents objected to my going there alone.
She dreaded having to tell him what had happened.
I don't blame you for the accident. It wasn't your fault.
It is next to impossible for me to go with you.
I regret not having studied hard for the test.
He is proud that his wife is a good cook.
We wanted to speak to the president of the company, but he refused to speak to us.
You can't blame him for the accident.
To study English is important for today's young people.
Our school prohibits us from going to the movies alone.
Their job is to read the news clearly and carefully.
We were just talking about you when you called.
It is quite common for women to go out to work.
You're old enough to take care of yourself.
I am very anxious to know why he did such a thing.
Were I in your place I would do the same thing.
Granted that he is honest, but I doubt his ability.
My father would not permit me to go on to college.
Her success encouraged me to try the same thing.
I thanked him for what he had done.
In our culture, we can't be married to two women at once.
I refused to eat until my parents came home.
I must admit I don't like much contemporary music.
To prevent the disease from spreading quickly was not an easy task.
You must remember to tell him all that you know.
He likes to boast about his father's successful automobile business.
Why don't you try doing whatever you want on this island too?
The food is very good and the same is true of the service.
How do you feel about your father?
You never talk about your wife.
I will leave everything about the party up to you.
As for living in Japan, I have nothing to complain about.