謙虚 (kenkyo) conjugation
modesty, humble
謙虚 (けんきょ, kenkyo) is a na-adjective. Na-adjectives behave like nouns. The word itself never changes — you conjugate だ/です after it, and you need な to put it in front of a noun.
Conjugation table
| Form | Plain (casual) | Polite (~です) | When you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dictionary / plain | 謙虚だ kenkyoda | 謙虚です kenkyodesu | The form you look up. Also the casual “is ~”. |
| Negative | 謙虚じゃない kenkyojanai | 謙虚じゃないです kenkyojanaidesu | “is not ~”. |
| Past | 謙虚だった kenkyodatta | 謙虚でした kenkyodeshita | “was ~”. |
| Past negative | 謙虚じゃなかった kenkyojanakatta | 謙虚じゃなかったです kenkyojanakattadesu | “was not ~”. |
| Te-form | 謙虚で kenkyode | — | Links to the next clause: “~ and …”. |
| Adverb | 謙虚に kenkyoni | — | Turns it into “~ly”, describing a verb. |
| Before a noun | 謙虚な〜 kenkyona〜 | — | How it attaches when it modifies a noun. |
| Conditional (~ば/なら) | 謙虚なら kenkyonara | — | “if it is ~”. |
| Conditional (~たら) | 謙虚だったら kenkyodattara | — | “if / when it is ~”. The everyday conditional. |
| Become (~なる) | 謙虚になる kenkyoninaru | 謙虚になります kenkyoninarimasu | “becomes ~” — the change-of-state form. |
| Too much (~すぎる) | 謙虚すぎる kenkyosugiru | 謙虚すぎます kenkyosugimasu | “too ~”. |
| Looks ~ (~そう) | 謙虚そう kenkyosou | 謙虚そうです kenkyosoudesu | “looks / seems ~” from appearance. |
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Why it conjugates this way
Na-adjectives behave like nouns. The word itself never changes — you conjugate だ/です after it, and you need な to put it in front of a noun.
See the full rules in the adjective conjugation guide.
