Page 86 - Basic Japanese

2.3. Place words (relative location)

Words such as ue ‘topside’ and naka ‘inside’ are used along

with reference nouns as in tēburu no ue ‘on the top of the

table.’ They are often used for situations we would express
in English with prepositions like in, on, under, behind, above,

and between.

mae in front

ushiro behind

migi right

hidari left

ue up

shita below

soba beside, near

chikaku near(by)

naka inside

soto outside

tonari next door, next position

aida between (two places)

Here are some example sentences.

Eki wa ginkō no ushiro desu.
The train station is behind the bank.

Jūdenki wa tēburu no shita ni arimasu.
The charger is under the table.