にわか (niwaka) conjugation
sudden, abrupt, unexpected
にわか (にわか, niwaka) 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.
Written 俄 in kanji, but usually written in kana alone.
Conjugation table
| Form | Plain (casual) | Polite (~です) | When you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dictionary / plain | にわかだ niwakada | にわかです niwakadesu | The form you look up. Also the casual “is ~”. |
| Negative | にわかじゃない niwakajanai | にわかじゃないです niwakajanaidesu | “is not ~”. |
| Past | にわかだった niwakadatta | にわかでした niwakadeshita | “was ~”. |
| Past negative | にわかじゃなかった niwakajanakatta | にわかじゃなかったです niwakajanakattadesu | “was not ~”. |
| Te-form | にわかで niwakade | — | Links to the next clause: “~ and …”. |
| Adverb | にわかに niwakani | — | Turns it into “~ly”, describing a verb. |
| Before a noun | にわかな〜 niwakana〜 | — | How it attaches when it modifies a noun. |
| Conditional (~ば/なら) | にわかなら niwakanara | — | “if it is ~”. |
| Conditional (~たら) | にわかだったら niwakadattara | — | “if / when it is ~”. The everyday conditional. |
| Become (~なる) | にわかになる niwakaninaru | にわかになります niwakaninarimasu | “becomes ~” — the change-of-state form. |
| Too much (~すぎる) | にわかすぎる niwakasugiru | にわかすぎます niwakasugimasu | “too ~”. |
| Looks ~ (~そう) | にわかそう niwakasou | にわかそうです niwakasoudesu | “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.