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How to Say ‘Became interested’ in Japanese

興味がわきました

kyoumi ga waki mashi ta

[kyoh-mee ga wah-kee mah-shee tah]

💬 Usage Tip: 興味がわく literally means "interest wells up" or "arises," and 興味 takes が, not を, in this expression. You can swap in other tenses: 興味がわきます "I get interested" or 興味がわいてきました "I'm starting to get interested."

Phrase Breakdown

興味

kyoumi

[kyoh-mee]

interest

A feeling of curiosity or attraction toward something.

Example

御社の事業に興味があります。

I am interested in your company's business.

が

ga

[ga]

subject marker

A particle marking the subject of the sentence.

Example

興味がある分野を教えてください。

Please tell me the field you are interested in.

わき

waki

[wah-kee]

arose; sprang up

From the verb わく, meaning interest or emotion came up naturally.

Example

話を聞いて関心がわきました。

After hearing the talk, my interest arose.

まし

mashi

[mah-shee]

polite past stem

Part of the polite past ending in a verb phrase.

Example

昨日は多くのことを学びました。

I learned many things yesterday.

た

ta

[tah]

past tense ending

Marks the action as completed in the past.

Example

説明を聞いたあとで考えました。

I thought about it after hearing the explanation.

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