GrammarJLPT N5
→ to become
To become / To result in
JLPT N5Conjugation patternNeutral
なる is one of the most fundamental verbs in Japanese, expressing a change of state — 'to become' or 'to get.' Unlike する, which implies that someone actively makes something happen, なる describes a change that occurs naturally or as a result of circumstances, without emphasizing an agent. It pairs with nouns and な-adjectives using the particle に (noun/な-adj + に + なる), and with い-adjectives by dropping the final い and adding く (い-adj stem + く + なる). This grammar point is essential at every level of Japanese: at the basic level it describes simple changes like seasons or feelings, and at more advanced levels it appears in honorific patterns like <strong>お～になる</strong> and habitual-change expressions like <strong>ようになる</strong>. Because なる is a Godan (う-verb) ending in る, learners must be careful not to conjugate it as an Ichidan verb.
Functions
#1 Change of state with nouns (に + なる)
Structure
Noun + に + なる
わたしは 先生になりました。
When なる follows a noun with the particle に, it expresses that someone or something has changed into or become that noun. Here, the speaker states that they became a teacher. The particle に marks the result of the change, and なりました is the polite past form of なる, indicating the change is complete.I became a teacher.
Structures
- Noun / な-Adjective
- Noun / な-Adjective + に + なる
- い-Adjective
- い-Adjective (drop い) + く + なる
Common mistakes
A frequent error is using に with い-adjectives — for example, saying 「暑いになる」 instead of the correct 「暑くなる」. Remember that い-adjectives change い to く, while nouns and な-adjectives take に. Another common mistake is confusing なる with する: なる describes a change that happens (often naturally), while する means someone actively makes it happen (e.g., 静かになる = it becomes quiet vs. 静かにする = to make it quiet / to be quiet). Learners also sometimes conjugate なる as an Ichidan verb because it ends in る, producing incorrect forms like 「なれる」 for the て-form instead of the correct 「なって」. Finally, beginners may forget to include the particle に before なる when using nouns, saying 「医者なる」 instead of 「医者になる」.
Related
になるくなるとなるにするようになるお～になる