What does 進む mean?
進む is a Japanese verb meaning “to go forward” or “to advance” in English. It can also be translated as “to make progress” or “to be fast (of a clock)” depending on context. It is written as 進む in kanji, すすむ in hiragana, and susumu in romaji. This word is part of JLPT N4 vocabulary.
Example sentences
この道をまっすぐ進んでください。
Please go straight along this road.
仕事が思ったより早く進んでいます。
The work is progressing faster than I expected.
Conjugation of 進む
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Plain | 進むすすむ | 進まないすすまない |
| Plain past | 進んだすすんだ | 進まなかったすすまなかった |
| Polite | 進みますすすみます | 進みませんすすみません |
| Polite past | 進みましたすすみました | 進みませんでしたすすみませんでした |
Other forms
Te-form進んですすんで
Potential進めるすすめる
Passive進まれるすすまれる
Volitional進もうすすもう
Causative進ませるすすませる
Conditional進めばすすめば
,
Transitive partner
進む (it happens by itself)·進める (someone does it)
進む describes something happening by itself. 進める describes someone doing it to something. Japanese keeps these apart where English often uses one verb for both.