変わる

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 変わる is a godan intransitive verb read かわる, meaning that a state, quality, or appearance changes. Its past form is 変わった.
• Basic usage: The thing that changes takes が, and the verb can describe both a recurring change under a condition and a major change over a long period.
  • 季節が変わると庭の色も変わる。 says that the garden's colors change when the seasons change; 駅前の景色は十年で大きく変わった。 says that the scenery in front of the station changed greatly over ten years.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 変わると
  • と links each change of season with the general result that the garden's colors also change.
• 十年で変わった
  • で presents ten years as the span over which the change occurred, and 大きく describes its degree.
• 変わる and 変える
  • 変わる is intransitive and describes something becoming different, while 変える is transitive and describes someone changing it.