Differences between 「は (Wa)」and「が (Ga)」 |

It can be quite confusing for beginners to distinguish the differences between「は (Wa)」and「が (Ga)」. I have summarised some points for those who are new to 「は」and「が」 to start. Firstly, let’s have a look at the English grammar on how a complete sentence constructs with the order as below:

Subject-Verb-Object.

For example: 　　　　　　　　She watches TV.

Definitions in English

Subject (noun: person, name, place; the one that performs the action): She

Verb (or predicate: identifies an action): watches

Object (receives the action): TV

—————————————————-

Let’s look at the basic Japanese sentecne consutruction as below with 「は」:

For example: 　　　　彼女（かのじょ）はテレビを見（み）ます。

Topic/ Subject + T.M. + Object + D.O.M. + Verb。

Topic/ Subject: 彼女（かのじょ）

Topic Marker (T.M.): は

Object: テレビ

Direct Object Marker (D.O.M.): を

Verb: 見（み）ます

In Japanese, a topic indicates a topic of discussion. This means the content that the person would like to talk about.
A topic can also be the subject as in English but covers broader content than the subject.

Subject Marker (S.M.): 「が」marks the subject that performs the action.

彼女（かのじょ）がテレビを見ます。

Topic/ Subject + S.M. + Object + D.O.M. + Verb。