Where is my cat?

Where Is the Cat? — Japanese Lesson
Japanese Lesson

Where Is the Cat?

猫はどこにいますか？
Neko wa doko ni imasu ka?

Learn how to ask where things (and cats!) are in Japanese. This lesson covers position words, household locations, and how to say a living creature is somewhere in Japanese.

Your cats: Thor → トール (Tōru)
Your cats: Loki → ロキ (Roki)
Grammar

The key patterns

Japanese uses a very consistent structure for "where is X?" and "X is [somewhere]." The good news: once you know the formula, every dialogue in this lesson works the same way.

Pattern 1 — Asking "Where is...?"

[subject] は どこ に いますか？
wa (は) marks the topic — what you're asking about.
doko (どこ) = "where"
ni (に) is the location particle — it always follows the place word.
imasu ka? (います か？) = "is [it]?" — imasu is for living things (people, animals).

Example: トールはどこにいますか？ → "Where is Thor?"

Pattern 2 — Answering "X is [location]"

[place] の [position word] に います。
no (の) connects two nouns — like "of" or "'s" in English.
So ソファの上に = "on (top of) the sofa" (literally: sofa's top/above, at).
imasu (います) = "[it] is" — the full stop ends the sentence.

For places with no direction word needed, just use the place + に:
キッチンにいます。 → "He is in the kitchen."
⚠️ Critical: いる (iru) vs ある (aru)
Living things — people & animals
います (imasu)
猫はソファの上にいます。
The cat IS on the sofa.
Non-living things — objects & places
あります (arimasu)
本はテーブルの上にあります。
The book IS on the table.
Cats are living → always use います. This is one of the most important distinctions in Japanese — and one of the most common mistakes for beginners.
Vocabulary — Position Words

Where exactly?

These words always follow の (no) + place name, then に (ni). Pattern: [place] の [position] に

Japanese Reading Meaning Full example with ソファ
上 うえ / ue on top of / above ソファのうえに
下 した / shita under / below ソファのしたに
中 なか / naka inside / in ベッドのなかに
後ろ うしろ / ushiro behind / at the back of ソファのうしろに
前 まえ / mae in front of まどのまえに
そば / 隣 そば / soba   となり / tonari next to / beside わたしのそばに
間 あいだ / aida between クッションのあいだに
Memory trick: Think of の as "apostrophe-s" — ソファの上 = "sofa's top" = "on (top of) the sofa." Then に just means "at" that location. So the whole thing is: "at sofa's top" = on the sofa. ✓
Vocabulary — Places

Locations around the house

キッチン
kicchin
kitchen
キッチンにいます
He is in the kitchen
ソファ
sofa
sofa
ソファの上にいます
He is on the sofa
ベッド
beddo
bed
ベッドの中にいます
He is in/on the bed
パソコンデスク
pasokon desuku
computer desk
デスクの上にいます
He is on the desk
車
くるま / kuruma
car
車の上にいます
He is on the car
窓
まど / mado
window / windowsill
窓の前にいます
He is at the window
階段
かいだん / kaidan
stairs
階段の上にいます
He is on the stairs
クローゼット
kurōzetto
wardrobe / closet
クローゼットの中に
Inside the wardrobe
膝
ひざ / hiza
lap / knee
膝の上にいます
He is on my lap
庭
にわ / niwa
garden
庭にいます
He is in the garden
椅子
いす / isu
chair
椅子の上にいます
He is on the chair
本棚
ほんだな / hondana
bookshelf
本棚の上にいます
He is on the bookshelf
Note on キッチン vs 台所: キッチン (kicchin) is the modern loanword and the one you'll hear most in everyday speech. 台所 (だいどころ, daidokoro) is the traditional Japanese word — both are correct, but キッチン feels natural for a modern home conversation.
Vocabulary — Key Question Words
猫 / ねこ
neko
cat
私の猫はどこ？
Where is my cat?
どこ
doko
where
どこにいますか？
Where is [it]?
私の
わたしの / watashi no
my
私の猫 = my cat
彼の / 彼女の
kare no / kanojo no
his / her
Often dropped — implied in context
Japanese often drops pronouns. You don't need to say "he is on the sofa" — just ソファの上にいます is natural and complete. The subject (Thor, Loki, the cat) is understood from context. In these dialogues the answer lines are often just the location + います with no pronoun at all — that's perfectly natural Japanese.
Dialogues

12 mini conversations

Each dialogue is two lines: a question and an answer. Blue speaker = question  ·  Pink speaker = answer. Thor = トール  ·  Loki = ロキ

Dialogue 01 — my cat / computer desk
Question
私の猫はどこにいますか？
Watashi no neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is my cat?
Answer
パソコンデスクの上にいます。
Pasokon desuku no ue ni imasu.
He is on the computer desk.
Dialogue 02 — Thor / his bed
Question
トールはどこにいますか？
Tōru wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Thor?
Answer
ベッドの中にいます。
Beddo no naka ni imasu.
He is in his bed.
Dialogue 03 — Loki / kitchen
Question
ロキはどこにいますか？
Roki wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Loki?
Answer
キッチンにいます。
Kicchin ni imasu.
He is in the kitchen.
Dialogue 04 — the cat / on the car
Question
猫はどこにいますか？
Neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is the cat?
Answer
車の上にいます。
Kuruma no ue ni imasu.
He is on the car.
Dialogue 05 — Thor / behind the sofa
Question
トールはどこにいますか？
Tōru wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Thor?
Answer
ソファの後ろにいます。
Sofa no ushiro ni imasu.
He is behind the sofa.
Dialogue 06 — Loki / under the bed
Question
ロキはどこにいますか？
Roki wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Loki?
Answer
ベッドの下にいます。
Beddo no shita ni imasu.
He is under the bed.
Dialogue 07 — my cat / in front of the window
Question
私の猫はどこにいますか？
Watashi no neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is my cat?
Answer
窓の前にいます。
Mado no mae ni imasu.
He is in front of the window.
Dialogue 08 — Thor / next to me
Question
トールはどこにいますか？
Tōru wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Thor?
Answer
私のそばにいます。
Watashi no soba ni imasu.
He is next to me.
Dialogue 09 — Loki / on the sofa
Question
ロキはどこにいますか？
Roki wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Loki?
Answer
ソファの上にいます。
Sofa no ue ni imasu.
He is on the sofa.
Dialogue 10 — the cat / in the wardrobe
Question
猫はどこにいますか？
Neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is the cat?
Answer
クローゼットの中にいます。
Kurōzetto no naka ni imasu.
He is inside the wardrobe.
Dialogue 11 — Thor / on the stairs
Question
トールはどこにいますか？
Tōru wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Thor?
Answer
階段の上にいます。
Kaidan no ue ni imasu.
He is on the stairs.
Dialogue 12 — Loki / on my lap
Question
ロキはどこにいますか？
Roki wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is Loki?
Answer
私の膝の上にいます。
Watashi no hiza no ue ni imasu.
He is on my lap.
Dialogue 12 has a double の! 私の膝の上 = "my lap's top" — two の in a row is perfectly normal in Japanese. It works the same as "my knee's top" → "on top of my knee" → "on my lap." Don't let double-の throw you — just read them left to right.
Quick Reference

All the sentences at a glance

猫はどこにいますか？
Neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where is the cat?
ソファの上にいます。
Sofa no ue ni imasu.
He is on the sofa.
ベッドの中にいます。
Beddo no naka ni imasu.
He is in the bed.
ソファの後ろにいます。
Sofa no ushiro ni imasu.
He is behind the sofa.
ベッドの下にいます。
Beddo no shita ni imasu.
He is under the bed.
窓の前にいます。
Mado no mae ni imasu.
He is in front of the window.
私のそばにいます。
Watashi no soba ni imasu.
He is next to me.
キッチンにいます。
Kicchin ni imasu.
He is in the kitchen.
車の上にいます。
Kuruma no ue ni imasu.
He is on the car.
クローゼットの中にいます。
Kurōzetto no naka ni imasu.
He is inside the wardrobe.
階段の上にいます。
Kaidan no ue ni imasu.
He is on the stairs.
私の膝の上にいます。
Watashi no hiza no ue ni imasu.
He is on my lap.
Challenge

Build your own sentences

Try these in Japanese — answers below (no peeking first!):

1. Where is Thor? (you ask)
トールはどこにいますか？
Tōru wa doko ni imasu ka?
2. Loki is on the bookshelf. (you answer)
本棚の上にいます。
Hondana no ue ni imasu.
3. My cat is in the garden. (you answer)
庭にいます。
Niwa ni imasu.
4. Thor is between the cushions.
クッションの間にいます。
Kusshon no aida ni imasu.
Real-life practice tip: Next time you're looking for Thor or Loki around the house, say the question out loud in Japanese — トールはどこにいますか？ — and then answer yourself when you find him. It sounds silly but it's incredibly effective for building the pattern into muscle memory. Cats are excellent Japanese tutors. They won't correct your pronunciation but they also won't judge it. 🐱