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JLPT N4Expressions

から作る vs で作る— Made from / Made of

Two patterns for describing what something is made of. から = a raw material transformed into the product (the original is no longer visible). で = a material directly used, still identifiable in the finished thing.

Grammar path · 練習

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A short lesson: the pattern, its sentence anatomy, a quick quiz and a sentence to build.

Pro lessonUNIT 25 · EXPRESSIONS

Structure · 形

[Material] + から + 作る / できている | [Material] + で + 作る / できている

Examples · 例文

  • ワインはぶどうから作られます。

    Wain wa budou kara tsukuraremasu.

    Wine is made from grapes.

    ぶどう→ワイン: chemical transformation — grapes no longer visible → から

  • パンは小麦粉から作られている。

    Pan wa komugiko kara tsukurarete iru.

    Bread is made from wheat flour.

    Transformation: the flour changes form completely → から

  • この椅子は木で作られています。

    Kono isu wa ki de tsukurarete imasu.

    This chair is made of wood.

    木で = wood as material, still visibly wood → で

Usage notes · 注意

  • から (transformation — original material unrecognizable): ぶどう→ワイン, 大豆→豆腐.
  • で (composition — material identifiable): 木→椅子, 石→壁, 金→指輪.
  • This is a common N4 exam point.
  • できている = 'is made of' (state of completion).

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones から作る is tested against.

vsで (means / location)

Here で marks a physically identifiable building material; contrast with から, which marks a raw material that has been chemically/physically transformed.

vsでできている

でできている describes a still-visible material composition; からできている describes a transformed raw material.

More expressions

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