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JLPT N5Preferences

好き / 嫌い— Like and Dislike

好き (like) and 嫌い (dislike/hate) are grammatically na-adjectives describing a state of feeling, NOT verbs of action. The thing liked/disliked is marked with が.

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Structure · 形

[Thing/Person] が 好き／嫌い です

Examples · 例文

  • 猫が好きです。

    Neko ga suki desu.

    I like cats.

    猫 (cats) + が + 好き (liked) + です

  • 嘘つきが嫌いだ。

    Usotsuki ga kirai da.

    I hate liars.

    嘘つき (liar) + が + 嫌い (disliked) + だ (plain copula)

  • 私は夏が好きですが、冬は嫌いです。

    Watashi wa natsu ga suki desu ga, fuyu wa kirai desu.

    I like summer, but I hate winter.

    夏が好き / 冬は嫌い — the liked thing takes が; は replaces it here for contrast

Usage notes · 注意

  • The を trap: Because English says 'I LIKE pizza,' beginners reach for を. That is wrong — 好き/嫌い are stative, so the liked thing takes が (ピザが好きです).
  • Love confession: 大好き literally means 'big like.' あなたが好きです is the standard, natural confession at the N5 level; 愛してる is used far more rarely.
  • Na-adjective use: before a noun they take な — 好きな映画 (a movie I like), 嫌いな人 (a person I dislike).

Commonly confused with

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

vs嫌い vs 苦手

嫌い is a direct 'dislike/hate.' 苦手 is softer — 'not good with / not my strong point,' often used to decline food or activities politely without sounding harsh.

vs〜が好き vs 〜たい

好き describes liking a thing/activity in general (映画が好き). 〜たい expresses wanting to do a specific action right now (映画が見たい = I want to watch a movie).

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