辞書形の作り方

## What it means The **dictionary form** is the plain, basic form of a verb — the one you'd actually find if you looked the word up in a dictionary. It's also the casual way of saying "do ~" instead of the polite ~ます form.

## When to use it Build it from the ~ます form: - **Group 1 verbs**: change the い-sound right before ます to an う-sound. 買います → 買う, 飲みます → 飲む, 話します → 話す. - **Group 2 verbs**: drop ます and add る. 食べます → 食べる, 見ます → 見る. - **Group 3 (irregular)**: します → する, きます → くる. The dictionary form isn't just for casual speech — it's also the building block for many later grammar patterns, like ことができます ("can do") and 前に ("before ~ing").

## Don't confuse it with A common mistake is thinking the dictionary form is somehow "more polite" or "more formal" than ~ます — it's actually the opposite, it's the plain/casual form. Another mix-up is confusing it with the **nai-form**: 飲む is "drink" (dictionary form), while 飲まない is "don't drink" (nai-form) — they look similar but mean opposite things.