Hi guys,
I just took the official N1 practice test from the JLPT website, and I think I passed. However, it's clear that grammar was my worst section – I only got about 50% of the questions right. My second worst section was reading – the questions I answered were mostly correct, but I ran out of time and couldn't complete the last 8 questions.
I think my issue with grammar comes from the fact that although I have no trouble with conjugating verbs or making grammatically correct sentences, the forms and words that appear in the grammar section don't appear often (or do, but are easy to ignore) in my main methods of immersion, which are watching anime (yeah, I know) and talking to people.
Since I also want to improve my reading speed so I don't run out of time next time, I'd like to hear people's recommendations for reading material that has lots of advanced grammar. For those of you who took the N1 but also had grammar as your weakest section, how did you improve your score in this area?
by Zev18
7 comments
i used the migii app on iOS and read a couple crappy isekai novels i bought on kindle and put grammar i didn’t know in an anti deck
I think they mention the sources for excerpts they use for exam problems. The difficulty level and language registers used in N1 tests should be more or less the same across problem types, I think. So, starting with the original sources of excerpts you find interesting may be a good idea. After that, with a little google-foo and a help of AI algos of amazon etc., I think you can find more essays, novels, and whatnot of the same broad category.
Why not just read Japanese novels if you’re going for N1? Only way to get better at reading is to read—grammar will come along naturally
I’m going to attempt N2, but I’ve heard that a lot of N1 grammar is not commonly used, or used mostly in writing (not speaking). I can’t recommend what to read, as it would be above my level anyway, but I feel that specific grammar study here (they have flashcards, too) might be worth it.
https://jlptsensei.com/jlpt-n1-grammar-list/
Here’s my anecdote from another language but I think it should apply to japanese as well. I’m Indonesian, but my Indonesian can be… Questionable to some. I’m fluent conversationally and no one would think twice about my Indonesian ability if they were to judge it from daily conversations. However, my formal Indonesian sucks balls. At least it used to. It got better the past few years. This is because I used to go to an English speaking school so the education was done 90% in English, first language English was more prioritized compared to first language indonesian, and the media (books, movies, games) I consumed was mostly in English. I learned Indonesian mostly through daily conversations and going about my day, in which it was mostly casual or semi casual. My formal Indonesian got better once I got to college and started a full time job, requiring me to properly speak and listen to formal Indonesian. I’m sure the situation is similar to yours, in that your immersion is mostly conversational japanese (anime and daily conversations). Try changing it up, is what I would try. Read more difficult novels and dive deeper into keigo maybe?
#I think what you are looking for are called “Books”.
N1 has very little “N1 grammar”. N1 grammar can be very specific so even on the N1 it may not appear much.
One time when I took it there was more N1 grammar points in the listening section than the grammar section. One time there was a keigo grammar question which is considered N4.
How often are you coming across N1 grammar points??? You can get a very high score by just studying up to N2 grammar.