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を details

を

object marker — the thing a verb acts on, the ground it crosses, or the place it leaves

ごめん、傘かさを電車でんしゃに忘わすれちゃった。

gomen, kasa o densha ni wasurechatta.

Sorry, I left my umbrella on the train. casual

この道みちをまっすぐ行いくと、右みぎに郵便局ゆうびんきょくがあります。

kono michi o massugu iku to, migi ni yuubinkyoku ga arimasu.

Go straight along this road and the post office is on your right. neutral

Examples

direct object — the thing the verb does something to

ごめん、傘かさを電車でんしゃに忘わすれちゃった。

gomen, kasa o densha ni wasurechatta.

Sorry, I left my umbrella on the train. casual

毎朝まいあさ、駅えきの売店ばいてんで新聞しんぶんを買かいます。

maiasa, eki no baiten de shinbun o kaimasu.

Every morning I buy a paper at the kiosk in the station. neutral

本日ほんじつは貴重きちょうなお時間じかんをいただき、ありがとうございます。

honjitsu wa kichou na o jikan o itadaki, arigatou gozaimasu.

Thank you for your valuable time today. formal

the ground crossed — with a verb of motion を marks the space travelled through, which the verb does nothing to

この道みちをまっすぐ行いくと、右みぎに郵便局ゆうびんきょくがあります。

kono michi o massugu iku to, migi ni yuubinkyoku ga arimasu.

Go straight along this road and the post office is on your right. neutral

毎晩まいばん、川沿かわぞいの道みちを走はしってる。

maiban, kawazoi no michi o hashitteru.

I run along the riverside path every night. casual

the place left — 出[で]る, 降[お]りる and 卒業[そつぎょう]する take を for what is being departed

毎朝まいあさ七時しちじに家いえを出でます。

maiasa shichiji ni ie o demasu.

I leave the house at seven every morning. neutral

次つぎの駅えきで電車でんしゃを降おりるね。

tsugi no eki de densha o oriru ne.

I'll get off the train at the next station. casual

Formation

Notes

One clause spends を once. A causative whose verb already spends it on the
object puts the causee on に instead — 子こどもに野菜やさいを食たべさせる,
never ×子こどもを野菜やさいを食たべさせる.

Related patterns

Similar

  • が

    The object flips to が as soon as the predicate turns stative — 日本語にほんごを話はなす but 日本語にほんごが分わかる and 日本語にほんごが上手じょうずだ, 水みずが欲ほしい; only the -eru potential takes both, where 日本語にほんごを話はなせる is now ordinary and が still reads as the safer, more written choice.

  • に

    Motion verbs split the pair by role — を marks the ground crossed or left (橋はしを渡わたる, 電車でんしゃを降おりる), に the point reached or boarded (駅えきに着つく, 電車でんしゃに乗のる) — and 会あう, 触さわる and 似にる reject を outright and take に instead, however transitive their English looks.

  • で

    The same place noun before the same motion verb reads two ways — 公園こうえんを走はしる traces a route through the park, 公園こうえんで走はしる names it as the site the running happens at; を follows the path, で bounds the venue.

  • は

    を does not survive topic marking — は and も displace it outright, so an object raised to topic loses it (本ほんは読よんだ, ×本ほんをは読よんだ), which is why a sentence with no を in it may still have an object.