Existence and Possession: ある and いる

Last time, you learned present progressive tense: “ごはんを食たべている (I’m eating a meal),” and resultant states: “かばんを持もっている (I have a bag).” As you notice, the concept of Japanese tense and aspect are different from English. In this lesson, we would like to focus on how to express existence and possession.

How ある and いる Work When Expressing Existence and Possession

Basic Idea of ある and いる

The basic usage is that ある can only be used for inanimate things, while いる can only be used for animate things. Both ある and いる indicate constant states which last constantly and the state won't normaly change. Therefore, they don’t have the te-form. Be careful; as we mentioned in the previous lesson, the negative form of ある is an exception.

How to Express Existence

That’s very simple. The only thing you have to keep in mind is if the subject is an animate thing or an inanimate thing. The definition sometimes confuses learners. Animals and insects are categorized into animate things without doubt. However, something like robots and germs depend on person's opinion.

The Particle に: Location of Existence

Here is a new function of the particle に, which indicates locations of existence. When it comes to expressing existence, the に part is usually (but not always) placed at the beginning. Here are some examples.

The particle に can be used with other verbs if they indicate existence. Don’t be confused with the particle で, which indicates locations of actions. It’s the key whether or not you take a specific action.

How to Express Possession

Proper expressions will vary depending on objects. In English you can just use “have,” e.g. you have a sister, a dream, a fever of 38°C (100°F), good eyes, a car, etc. However, you have to use different expressions in Japanese. Let’s check each usage one by one.

Animated Thing: には…がいる

When you express that you have animate things, you use には…がいる. You may wonder about the function of the particle に, however, we think you should just memorize this as a set phrase without logic.

The particle に is sometimes omitted especially when the particle は indicates contrast in context. 

Abstract Attribute: には…がある

When you express that you have an abstract attribute such as a dream or talent, you use には…がある. Like the above, you should just memorize this phrase. In this context, “持もっている: to have” is also acceptable, but not recommended.

Numerical Attribute: は…がある

When you express that you have numerical attributes, you use は…がある. Be careful because the particle に disappears here. When it comes to fevers, people are often concerned about whether you have a fever or a normal temperature. Thus, numerals can be omitted (only in this case).

Part of Body: は…をしている

When you express that you have a remarkable part of your body, you use は…をしている. You cannot use this sentence pattern without adjectives or adverbs. If you say “The Beatles have a voice,” that sounds strange in Japanese because everyone has a voice. している is the te-form + いる of する, but you should just memorize this as a set phrase without logic, either.

Other: は…を持もっている

Apart from the cases above, you simply use “持もっている: to have.” As you learned already, the te-form + いる indicates resultant states while the plain form: 持もつ indicates a momentary action like “to hold.”

Summary

1. ある can be used for inanimate things while いる can be used for animate things.
2. The particle に indicate locations of existence.
3. Expressions for possession will vary depending on objects.

In this lessons, you have learned how to express existence and possession by using constant states (ある・いる) and resultant states (持もっている). This is one of the cases where the concept is totally different from English. Thus, try to learn the patterns as it is. Next, you will learn how to express past tense with the ta-form.