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について — “about, regarding”

JLPT N3 Reference & Basis

Marks the topic being discussed, written about, or asked about

Noun + について marks the subject matter that follows is discussing, explaining, or asking about — “regarding X, …”. It's neutral and common in essays, questions, and presentations; the の + noun form (についての) modifies a following noun directly.

How to form it

PatternExample
Noun + について日本の歴史について話す — talk about Japanese history
Noun + についての + noun環境問題についての本 — a book about environmental issues

Example sentences

JapaneseReadingMeaning
きょうはちきゅうおんだんかについてはなします。
kyouhachikyuuondankanitsuitehanashimasu。
Today I'll talk about global warming.
このけんについて、くわしくおしえてください。
konokennitsuite、kuwashikuoshietekudasai。
Please tell me more about this matter.
かれのいけんについてどうおもいますか。
karenoikennitsuitedouomoimasuka。
What do you think about his opinion?

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Watch out

について needs の before a following noun (についての本, not について本) — dropping の there is a common slip when the topic phrase modifies a noun directly.

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