modality N5 essential politewritten teineigo (polite)
のです — explanatory のだ (polite / written)
のです
Builds on のだ
Meaning
- it is that ~ / the fact is ~ — the formal / written polite form of explanatory のだ
Key sentence
申し訳ありませんが、ここには入れないのです。
I'm sorry, but it is that you cannot enter here.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb / i-adjective (plain form) | plain + のです | 入れない → 入れないのです |
| Noun / na-adjective (plain) | N/na-adj + なのです | 休業 → 休業なのです |
When: Formal speech, writing, and announcements; in ordinary polite conversation it contracts to んです.
Examples
本日は都合により休業なのです。
The fact is, we are closed today due to circumstances.
皆様にお伝えしたいことがあるのです。
There is something I wish to convey to everyone.
Easily confused with
See のです in real sentences
Jengo shows のです the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.