接続・範囲 · Connection & scope
へ
Direction (formal)
Marks direction toward a place. Often interchangeable with に for movement, with a slightly more formal or directional nuance.
When to use
- 日本へ行く ≈ 日本に行く for travel direction
- Often used in signs and formal writing
- へ is pronounced e when used as a particle
How to use
- 1Attach へ after the destination noun.
- 2Movement verbs (行く, 来る, 向かう) commonly take へ or に.
- 3Cannot mark static location — use に for "at."
Nuance & non-standard uses
Patterns that go beyond the textbook default — contrast, omission, register shifts, and mixed particles.
へ vs に — directional nuance, not grammar error
For many movement verbs, へ and に are interchangeable for destination. へ highlights direction or journey; に highlights arrival point or contact. Signs and lyrics favor へ; daily speech often prefers に.
東京へ。
To Tokyo — departure board style, directional.
東京に行く。
Go to Tokyo — neutral everyday.
へ in letters and formal direction
宛名 (addresses) and formal prose use 〜へ for "to (someone)" — 先生へ. This is register-marked; casual chat uses に or あてに more often.
お母さんへ
To Mom — on a letter heading.
Cannot replace に for static location
存在・接触の「点」にはへは使わない: *机の上へ本がある is wrong. へ is strictly directional / toward, not "at."
駅の前に集合ね。
Meet in front of the station — に for point, not へ.
Examples
西へ歩いた。
Walked toward the west.
故郷へ帰る。
Return to one's hometown.