How to Say ‘It's sleeping on the sofa.’ in Japanese
ソファで寝ています。
sofa de ne te i masu
[SOH-fah de neh te ee mahs]
💬 Usage Tip: で marks where an action happens: ソファで寝る, 駅で待つ "wait at the station". The 〜ています form means it's going on right now.
Phrase Breakdown
ソファで
sofa de
on the sofa
ソファ (sofa) is a loanword. で (de) marks the place where an action happens.
ソファで本を読みます。
I read books on the sofa.
Words in this phrase
ソファ
sofa
[SOH-fah]
sofa
A loanword from English for a couch.
ソファに座ります。
I sit on the sofa.
で
de
[de]
at; in
Indicates a location where an action takes place.
公園で遊びます。
I play at the park.
寝ています。
ne te i masu
is sleeping
This is the polite ongoing form of 寝る (neru, 'to sleep'). In fast speech it sounds like 'nete imasu'.
子どもは寝ています。
The child is sleeping.
Words in this phrase
寝
ne
[neh]
sleep
Stem of 寝る, 'to sleep; to lie down'.
早く寝てください。
Please go to sleep early.
て
te
[te]
te-form ending
Connects actions in sequence, like 'and' or 'then'.
ドアが開いて、入ります。
The door opens, and then I go in.
い
i
[ee]
to be; ongoing state
Part of ている, which shows an ongoing condition or action.
最近疲れているようです。
It seems you have been tired lately.
ます
masu
[mahs]
polite verb ending
A standard polite ending added to verbs, often used in customer service and formal speech.
予約を確認し ます。
I will confirm the reservation.
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