JLPT N2 grammar list
83 core JLPT N2 grammar patterns, each paired with an example sentence and studied with real spaced repetition. Free, no signup, works in your browser.
N2 grammar is the formal, written register — the patterns of newspapers, business and structured argument (〜にあたって, 〜をはじめ, 〜にかかわらず, 〜ものの, and the rest). The list below is EverFlip's curated core, none of it repeated from N3; tap any group to study it with the forgetting-curve scheduling that times each review to memory.
N2 grammar I
Study these 21 →- 〜際に (on the occasion of / when)お降りの際は、足元にご注意ください。Please watch your step when you get off.
- 〜に際して (at the time of / on the occasion of)入学に際して、新しい教科書を買いそろえた。On the occasion of entering school, I bought a full set of new textbooks.
- 〜にあたって (when about to / on the occasion of)新事業を始めるにあたって、十分な調査を行った。When about to start the new business, we conducted thorough research.
- 〜をはじめ (starting with / including notably)この大学には、アジアをはじめ世界中から留学生が集まる。Students gather at this university from all over the world, starting with Asia.
- 〜にかかわらず (regardless of)経験の有無にかかわらず、誰でも応募できます。Regardless of whether you have experience or not, anyone can apply.
- 〜もかまわず (without caring about)彼は人目もかまわず、大声で泣き出した。Without caring about onlookers, he burst out crying loudly.
- 〜を問わず (regardless of / irrespective of)年齢を問わず、どなたでもご参加いただけます。Regardless of age, anyone is welcome to participate.
- 〜ずにはいられない (cannot help but)あの映画を見ると、誰もが泣かずにはいられない。When you watch that movie, no one can help but cry.
- 〜あげく (after all that / in the end)さんざん迷ったあげく、結局買わなかった。After agonizing over it endlessly, in the end I didn't buy it.
- 〜末に (after much / at the end of)長い議論の末に、ようやく結論が出た。After a long discussion, we finally reached a conclusion.
- 〜以上(は) (now that / since)約束した以上は、必ず守るべきだ。Now that you've promised, you should definitely keep your word.
- 〜ばかりに (simply because / on account of)一言よけいなことを言ったばかりに、彼を怒らせてしまった。Simply because I said one unnecessary word, I ended up angering him.
- 〜かのように (as if / as though)彼はまるで何も知らなかったかのように振る舞った。He behaved as if he had known nothing about it.
- 〜に相違ない (must surely be / undoubtedly)この筆跡から、犯人は彼に相違ない。Judging from this handwriting, the culprit is undoubtedly him.
- 〜にしろ〜にしろ (whether ... or)行くにしろ行かないにしろ、早く連絡してほしい。Whether you're going or not, I want you to let me know quickly.
- 〜得る (can / be possible)そんなことは、十分に起こり得る話だ。Such a thing is entirely possible to happen.
- 〜得ない (cannot / impossible)彼が嘘をつくなんて、ありえないことだ。It's impossible that he would tell a lie.
- 〜とたん(に) (the instant that / as soon as)ドアを開けたとたんに、猫が飛び出してきた。The instant I opened the door, the cat came leaping out.
- 〜が早いか (no sooner than / the moment)彼はベルが鳴るが早いか、教室を飛び出した。No sooner had the bell rung than he dashed out of the classroom.
- 〜や否や (as soon as / immediately upon)彼は家に着くや否や、ベッドに倒れ込んだ。As soon as he got home, he collapsed onto the bed.
- 〜次第で (depending on)明日の天気次第で、出発の時間を決めましょう。Let's decide the departure time depending on tomorrow's weather.
N2 grammar II
Study these 21 →- 〜にもかかわらず (in spite of / despite)悪天候にもかかわらず、試合は予定通り行われた。Despite the bad weather, the match was held as scheduled.
- 〜だけまし (at least it's better than / could be worse)給料は安いが、仕事があるだけましだ。The pay is low, but at least it's better than having no job at all.
- 〜だけのことはある (no wonder / it's worth it)さすがプロだけのことはあって、仕事が早い。He really lives up to being a pro — his work is fast.
- 〜ものなら (if (by some chance) you could)できるものなら、もう一度あの頃に戻りたい。If I could, I'd like to go back to those days once more.
- 〜ものか (absolutely not / as if I would)あんな失礼な店に、二度と行くものか。As if I'd ever go to such a rude shop again!
- 〜ことだ (you should / the best thing is to)風邪を早く治したいなら、ゆっくり休むことだ。If you want to get over your cold quickly, the best thing is to rest well.
- 〜上は (now that / since [you've decided])引き受けた上は、最後まで責任を持ってやり遂げる。Now that I've taken it on, I'll see it through to the end responsibly.
- 〜というものだ (that's what it means to / that's just)困っている人を助けるのが、人情というものだ。Helping people in trouble is just what human kindness is.
- 〜というものではない (it's not the case that / not necessarily)お金さえあれば幸せだというものではない。It's not the case that you're happy just as long as you have money.
- 〜にこたえて (in response to / meeting)ファンの期待にこたえて、彼は見事に優勝した。In response to the fans' hopes, he splendidly won the championship.
- 〜にほかならない (is nothing other than / is precisely)彼の成功は、日々の努力の結果にほかならない。His success is nothing other than the result of daily effort.
- 〜に決まっている (must surely / of course)そんな話、嘘に決まっているじゃないか。A story like that is obviously a lie, isn't it?
- 決まって (always / without fail)父は日曜になると、決まって庭仕事をする。When Sunday comes, my father invariably does yard work.
- 〜をきっかけに (taking ... as an opportunity / triggered by)入院をきっかけに、彼は健康に気を使うようになった。His hospitalization became the trigger for him to start caring about his health.
- 〜ないことはない (it's not that you can't / it's possible)急げば、終電に間に合わないことはない。If we hurry, it's not impossible to catch the last train.
- 〜てしょうがない (can't help feeling / unbearably)国にいる家族のことが、心配でしょうがない。I can't help worrying about my family back home.
- 〜てたまらない (unbearably / can't stand it)新しいゲームが欲しくてたまらない。I want the new game so badly I can't stand it.
- 〜てならない (can't help but feel / extremely)あの時の判断が正しかったのか、悔やまれてならない。I can't help but feel deep regret over whether my decision then was right.
- 〜次第だ (the situation is that / that's why)以上のような理由で、計画を変更した次第です。For the reasons above, the situation is that we changed the plan.
- 〜ぬきで (without / leaving out)今日は仕事の話ぬきで、楽しく飲みましょう。Today, let's drink and have fun without any talk of work.
- 〜をぬきにして (leaving aside / setting aside)冗談をぬきにして、真剣に話し合おう。Setting jokes aside, let's discuss this seriously.
N2 grammar III
Study these 21 →- 〜つつある (be in the process of / gradually)町の人口は年々減りつつある。The town's population is gradually declining year by year.
- 〜にわたって (over / spanning / throughout)工事は三年にわたって続けられた。The construction continued over a span of three years.
- 〜をめぐって (concerning / over (a dispute))遺産の相続をめぐって、兄弟が争っている。The siblings are quarreling over the inheritance.
- 〜のもとで (under / under the guidance of)厳しい先生のもとで、彼は技術を磨いた。Under a strict teacher, he honed his skills.
- 〜からして (judging from / even (just) from)あの態度からして、彼は反省していないようだ。Judging just from that attitude, he doesn't seem to be reflecting on it.
- 〜はもとより (not only ... but also / let alone)彼は漢字はもとより、ひらがなも書けない。He can't write hiragana, let alone kanji.
- 〜にとどまらず (not limited to / extending beyond)被害は一国にとどまらず、世界中に広がった。The damage was not limited to one country but spread worldwide.
- 〜だの〜だの (things like ... and ... (complaints))彼は暑いだの寒いだのと、いつも文句ばかり言う。He's always complaining about things like it's too hot or too cold.
- 〜といい〜といい (whether ... or ... / both ... and)この服は色といいデザインといい、申し分ない。This outfit is perfect, both in color and in design.
- 〜げ (look / seem (appearance suffix))子供たちは楽しげに公園で遊んでいた。The children were playing happily in the park, looking like they were having fun.
- 〜ものがある (there is something ... / really is)彼の歌声には、人を引きつけるものがある。There is something captivating about his singing voice.
- 〜どうにか / 〜なんとか (somehow manage to)締め切りには、どうにか間に合わせることができた。I somehow managed to make the deadline in time.
- 〜てこそ (only after / it is precisely by doing)苦労を経験してこそ、人の痛みが分かる。It is only after experiencing hardship that you understand others' pain.
- 〜ことなく (without ever / without doing)彼は一度も休むことなく、十年間働き続けた。He kept working for ten years without ever taking a single break.
- 〜抜きには (without / leaving out — cannot proceed)皆さんの協力抜きには、この成功はありえなかった。Without everyone's cooperation, this success would have been impossible.
- 〜にしたところで (even ... / even in the case of)専門家にしたところで、未来を正確に予測はできない。Even an expert cannot accurately predict the future.
- 〜とあって (because of the special circumstance that)連休とあって、駅は旅行客でごった返していた。Because it was a long holiday, the station was packed with travelers.
- 〜たところ (upon doing / when I did, it turned out)問い合わせたところ、商品は在庫切れだった。When I inquired, it turned out the item was out of stock.
- 〜とあれば (if it is the case that / if (it's for that))子供のためとあれば、どんな苦労もいとわない。If it's for my child, I won't begrudge any hardship.
- 〜まみれ (covered/smeared with)子供たちは泥まみれになって遊んでいた。The children were playing, covered all over in mud.
- 〜こそすれ (it may ... but / does indeed ... yet)彼は感謝こそすれ、君を恨んだりはしないだろう。He may be grateful, but he surely won't resent you.
N2 grammar IV
Study these 20 →- 〜ぶりに (after an interval of / for the first time in)十年ぶりに故郷の町を訪れた。I visited my hometown for the first time in ten years.
- 〜ことに (to one's (emotion), ...)驚いたことに、彼は全ての試験に合格していた。To my surprise, he had passed all of the exams.
- 〜くせして (even though / despite (reproach))知らないくせして、彼は知ったかぶりをする。Even though he doesn't know, he pretends he does.
- 〜かと思えば (just when / no sooner ... than)泣いていたかと思えば、もう笑っている。Just when she was crying, she's already laughing again.
- 〜ものを (if only ... (regret/reproach))早く言ってくれれば手伝ったものを。If only you'd told me sooner, I would have helped.
- 〜ところを (at a time when / (sorry to trouble) when)お忙しいところを、お時間をいただき恐縮です。I'm sorry to take your time when you're so busy.
- 〜べく (in order to (formal/written))真相を確かめるべく、彼は現地へ向かった。In order to ascertain the truth, he headed to the site.
- 〜べからず (must not / forbidden (formal sign))ここにごみを捨てるべからず。Do not throw away trash here.
- 〜ながらに (while remaining / as one is)彼女は涙ながらに当時の出来事を語った。She recounted the events of that time in tears.
- 〜ずにすむ (manage without having to / be spared)友達が車を貸してくれたので、タクシーを使わずにすんだ。A friend lent me a car, so I was spared having to take a taxi.
- 〜かぎりだ (extremely / couldn't be more (emotion))一人で年を越すなんて、寂しいかぎりだ。Spending New Year's alone — it couldn't be lonelier.
- 〜きらいがある (tend to / have a (bad) tendency to)彼は物事を悪いほうに考えるきらいがある。He has a tendency to think about things in a negative way.
- 〜とは (the fact that ... / to think that)まさか彼が犯人だったとは、信じられない。To think that he was the culprit — it's unbelievable.
- 〜こそあれ (there may be ... but / although there is)多少の不満こそあれ、全体的には満足している。There may be some minor dissatisfaction, but overall I'm satisfied.
- 〜ともなると (when it comes to / once you reach)社長ともなると、責任の重さが違う。Once you become company president, the weight of responsibility is different.
- 〜にせよ〜にせよ (whether ... or ...)賛成するにせよ反対するにせよ、理由を述べてほしい。Whether you agree or disagree, please state your reasons.
- 〜にしても (even if / even granting that)冗談にしても、言っていいことと悪いことがある。Even as a joke, there are things you should and shouldn't say.
- 〜つもりで (with the intention/assumption of)新人のつもりで、一から勉強し直すことにした。Treating myself as a newcomer, I decided to study again from scratch.
- 〜あっての (only because there is ... (it exists))お客様あっての商売だということを忘れてはいけない。You must never forget that business exists only thanks to the customers.
- 〜からこそ (precisely because)君を信頼しているからこそ、厳しいことを言うんだ。It's precisely because I trust you that I say harsh things.
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A curated core of the highest-yield N2 items — not the full N2 list (the JLPT hasn't published an official one since 2010). Every card is checked against the N2 level, and against our N3 set so nothing is repeated from the level below.