をRoute or path marker
を marks a road, area, opening, or other space through which movement passes.
Pronunciation
As a particle, it is written を but pronounced お. The spelling does not change.
The verb makes the route meaning clear
Use this pattern with verbs that describe movement through space, such as 歩く, 走る, 通る, 渡る, and 曲がる. English may translate the particle as “through,” “across,” or “along,” or may express the route through the verb itself.
Paths, spaces, and passage points
The marked place is occupied or passed during the movement.
Route versus destination
を identifies the road or space traveled through. By contrast, に identifies the endpoint reached. In the same morning trip, the first sentence tells us the route, while the second tells us the destination.
More examples
朝、公園を散歩します。
I take a walk through the park in the morning.
Analyzeバスは長いトンネルを通った。
The bus passed through a long tunnel.
Analyze横断歩道を渡ってください。
Please cross at the crosswalk.
Analyze次の角を左に曲がります。
Turn left at the next corner.
Analyze猫が開いた窓を通って逃げた。
The cat escaped through an open window.
Analyze飛行機が雲の上を飛んでいる。
An airplane is flying above the clouds.
Analyze川沿いの道をゆっくり歩いた。
I walked slowly along the riverside road.
Analyze観光客が古い門をくぐった。
The tourists passed through the old gate.
Analyze