明確 (meikaku) conjugation
clear, definite
明確 (めいかく, meikaku) 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 | 明確だ meikakuda | 明確です meikakudesu | The form you look up. Also the casual “is ~”. |
| Negative | 明確じゃない meikakujanai | 明確じゃないです meikakujanaidesu | “is not ~”. |
| Past | 明確だった meikakudatta | 明確でした meikakudeshita | “was ~”. |
| Past negative | 明確じゃなかった meikakujanakatta | 明確じゃなかったです meikakujanakattadesu | “was not ~”. |
| Te-form | 明確で meikakude | — | Links to the next clause: “~ and …”. |
| Adverb | 明確に meikakuni | — | Turns it into “~ly”, describing a verb. |
| Before a noun | 明確な〜 meikakuna〜 | — | How it attaches when it modifies a noun. |
| Conditional (~ば/なら) | 明確なら meikakunara | — | “if it is ~”. |
| Conditional (~たら) | 明確だったら meikakudattara | — | “if / when it is ~”. The everyday conditional. |
| Become (~なる) | 明確になる meikakuninaru | 明確になります meikakuninarimasu | “becomes ~” — the change-of-state form. |
| Too much (~すぎる) | 明確すぎる meikakusugiru | 明確すぎます meikakusugimasu | “too ~”. |
| Looks ~ (~そう) | 明確そう meikakusou | 明確そうです meikakusoudesu | “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.