Structure
Verb［る］(1) + こと + が(2)ある
［い］Adjective + こと + が(2)ある
［な］Adjective + な + こと + が(2)ある
(1) Verb［ない］
(2) も
Details
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Standard
About ことがある
ことがある is an expression in Japanese that combines the noun こと with the case marking particle が, and the う - Verb, ある. It is often translated as 'to be possible', 'to occasionally occur', or 'to sometimes occur'. However, the more literal translation of ことがある is '(A) is a thing that exists'.
ことがある may be paired with the attributive form of any other word.
Occasionally, が may be replaced by も. In these situations, it implies that '(A) is also a thing that exists'. Basically this just highlights that (A) is something that needs to be considered (among other things).
Caution
ことがある differs from たことがある (a phrase commonly paired with the past form of verbs). たことがある highlights a single event in which the (A) verb was completed. However, when the verb is not in past form, it simply implies that there are 'times' when the verb happens, as opposed to a single/specific time.
- 週に一回のペースでラーメンを食べることがある。There are times when I go to eat ramen once a week.
-
このラーメンは食べたことがあると思う。I think I have eaten this ramen before.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Examples
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学校に送ってもらう事がある。
I sometimes get a ride to school.
頑張ってもうまくいかない事がある。
There are times when no matter how hard you try, it doesn't go well.
学校に送ってもらう事がある。
I sometimes get a ride to school.
友達は昼２時まで寝る事がある。
There are times when my friend sleeps until two in the afternoon.
あの番組ならたまに見る事がある。
(There are times that ) I sometimes watch that TV program.
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ことがある – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (2 in total)
Ambo100
The ‘LearnJapanese’ link is broken but can probably be replaced by this video:
mrnoone
Thank you @Ambo100
I have replaced the link to the site with the video
Cheers!
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