「～と思う」- Expressing Intentions and Subjective Opinions

Explanation

～と思う is a commonly used Japanese grammatical expression to convey the speaker's intentions, plans, or subjective opinions. Its basic structure is the volitional form of a verb + と思う, meaning "I plan to..." or "I intend to...".

Grammar Pattern

Grammar Point	Connection	Explanation
Volitional form of a verb + と思う	Volitional form + と思う	Used to express the speaker's intentions, plans, or subjective opinions about something.

Basic Usage

～と思う is typically attached to the volitional form of a verb to express the speaker's plan or intention to do something. The formation of the volitional form varies depending on the type of verb:

Verb Type	Conversion Rule	Example
Godan Verbs	Change the last kana to the corresponding お段 and add "う"	行く（いく）→ 行こう（いこう） 書く（かく）→ 書こう（かこう）
Ichidan Verbs	Replace the final る with よう	食べる（たべる）→ 食べよう（たべよう） 見る（みる）→ 見よう（みよう）
Irregular Verbs	する → しよう 来る（くる）→ 来よう（こよう）

Examples

• 来月らいげつ山田やまださんに会議かいぎに出でると思う。
• Raigetsu Yamada-san ni kaigi ni deru to omou.
• I plan to attend Yamada's meeting next month.
  

• 部屋へやを掃除そうじしようと思う。
• Heya o souji shiyou to omou.
• I plan to clean the room.
  

• 明日あしたは6時じに起おきようと思う。
• Ashita wa 6-ji ni okiyou to omou.
• I plan to wake up at 6 tomorrow.
  

Deep Dive

～と思う can be used to express various intentions and subjective opinions. Specific usages include:

Expressing Long-Term Plans or Intentions

Use ～と思っている to indicate that a plan or intention has been held for some time:

• 日本にほんに留学りゅうがくしようと思っています。
• Nihon ni ryuugaku shiyou to omotteimasu.
• I plan to study abroad in Japan.
  

Negative Form

The negative form is expressed as ようとは思わない:

• 彼かれは会社かいしゃを辞やめようとは思わない。
• Kare wa kaisha o yameyou to wa omowanai.
• He doesn't plan to quit the company.
  

Comparison and Differences

～と思う vs. ～つもり

～と思う expresses the speaker's subjective opinion or intention, while ～つもり more often indicates a plan or intention and can be used for third-person subjects.

Expression	Example	English Translation
私わたしは明日あした早はやく起おきようと思う。	Watashi wa ashita hayaku okiyou to omou.	I plan to wake up early tomorrow.
彼かれは明日あした早はやく起おきるつもりだ。	Kare wa ashita hayaku okiru tsumori da.	He plans to wake up early tomorrow.

Real-Life Scenarios

Here are some examples from everyday conversations to help understand the specific usage of ～と思う:

• 明日あしたは6時じに起おきようと思う。
• Ashita wa 6-ji ni okiyou to omou.
• I plan to wake up at 6 tomorrow.
  

• 部屋へやを掃除そうじしようと思う。
• Heya o souji shiyou to omou.
• I plan to clean the room.
  

Summary

～と思う is an important and frequently used grammatical structure in Japanese. Mastering its usage helps accurately express one's plans and intentions. By understanding its basic and advanced usages, as well as comparing it with similar expressions, you can use this grammar point more flexibly in conversations.