Transitive and Intransitive Verbs in Japanese

What Are Transitive and Intransitive Verbs?

In Japanese, many actions come in pairs. One version where someone DOES something to an object (transitive), and another where something happens on its own (intransitive).

Transitive verbs use the を particle to mark their object, which you'll see throughout our lesson on verb conjugation basics.

Transitive (他動詞(たどうし) / tadoushi): Someone opens the door → ドアを**開(あ)ける**
Intransitive (自動詞(じどうし) / jidoushi): The door opens → ドアが**開(あ)く**

Same event (door opening), but different perspectives. English handles this with one word ("the door opened" / "I opened the door"), but Japanese uses completely different verbs for each.

Common Transitive-Intransitive Pairs

Transitive (を)	Meaning	Intransitive (が)	Meaning
開(あ)ける (akeru)	to open (something)	開(あ)く (aku)	to open (by itself)
閉(し)める (shimeru)	to close (something)	閉(し)まる (shimaru)	to close (by itself)
つける	to turn on	つく	to turn on (by itself)
消(け)す (kesu)	to turn off/erase	消(き)える (kieru)	to disappear/go out
落(お)とす (otosu)	to drop	落(お)ちる (ochiru)	to fall
出(だ)す (dasu)	to take out	出(で)る (deru)	to come out/exit
壊(こわ)す (kowasu)	to break (something)	壊(こわ)れる (kowareru)	to break (by itself)
入(い)れる (ireru)	to put in	入(はい)る (hairu)	to enter

The Key Difference: Particles

The biggest practical difference is which particle you use:

Transitive: [person] が [object] を [verb]

私(わたし)がドアを開(あ)けた (I opened the door)

Intransitive: [thing] が [verb]

ドアが開(あ)いた (The door opened)

Transitive sentences need a doer AND a thing being acted upon. Intransitive sentences only need the thing that changes. No agent required.

Why This Matters

Getting these mixed up is one of the most common mistakes intermediate learners make, and it sounds unnatural to Japanese ears. Saying ドアを開(あ)いた when nobody opened it (it was the wind, or automatic) sounds weird. Like you're implying someone did it on purpose.

Japanese speakers choose transitive or intransitive based on whether they want to emphasize:

Who did it → transitive (電気(でんき)を消(け)した = I turned off the light)
What happened → intransitive (電気(でんき)が消(き)えた = the light went out)

Spotting Patterns

While you mostly need to memorize pairs, there are some patterns:

Many intransitive verbs end in ~ある/~る: 閉(し)まる, 上(うえ)がる, 始(はじ)まる
Many transitive verbs end in ~える/~す: 閉(し)める, 上(うえ)げる, 始(はじ)める
Verbs ending in ~す are almost always transitive: 落(お)とす, 出(だ)す, 壊(こわ)す

Example Sentences

窓(まど)を開(あ)けてください。 (mado wo akete kudasai.) — Please open the window. (transitive — you do it)
窓(まど)が開(あ)いている。 (mado ga aite iru.) — The window is open. (intransitive — state)
電気(でんき)を消(け)した。 (denki wo keshita.) — I turned off the light. (transitive)
電気(でんき)が消(き)えた。 (denki ga kieta.) — The light went out. (intransitive)
コップを落(お)とした。 (koppu wo otoshita.) — I dropped the cup. (transitive)
コップが落(お)ちた。 (koppu ga ochita.) — The cup fell. (intransitive)
授業(じゅぎょう)が始(はじ)まった。 (jugyou ga hajimatta.) — Class started. (intransitive)
先生(せんせい)が授業(じゅぎょう)を始(はじ)めた。 (sensei ga jugyou wo hajimeta.) — The teacher started class. (transitive)