真面目 (majime) conjugation
diligent, serious
真面目 (まじめ, majime) 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 | 真面目だ majimeda | 真面目です majimedesu | The form you look up. Also the casual “is ~”. |
| Negative | 真面目じゃない majimejanai | 真面目じゃないです majimejanaidesu | “is not ~”. |
| Past | 真面目だった majimedatta | 真面目でした majimedeshita | “was ~”. |
| Past negative | 真面目じゃなかった majimejanakatta | 真面目じゃなかったです majimejanakattadesu | “was not ~”. |
| Te-form | 真面目で majimede | — | Links to the next clause: “~ and …”. |
| Adverb | 真面目に majimeni | — | Turns it into “~ly”, describing a verb. |
| Before a noun | 真面目な〜 majimena〜 | — | How it attaches when it modifies a noun. |
| Conditional (~ば/なら) | 真面目なら majimenara | — | “if it is ~”. |
| Conditional (~たら) | 真面目だったら majimedattara | — | “if / when it is ~”. The everyday conditional. |
| Become (~なる) | 真面目になる majimeninaru | 真面目になります majimeninarimasu | “becomes ~” — the change-of-state form. |
| Too much (~すぎる) | 真面目すぎる majimesugiru | 真面目すぎます majimesugimasu | “too ~”. |
| Looks ~ (~そう) | 真面目そう majimesou | 真面目そうです majimesoudesu | “looks / seems ~” from appearance. |
🔊 Tap any Japanese word to hear it spoken.
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.