Lesson #13.2

Lesson 13 (Part II)

• Go in/ go out of ~ (house, building, a room)
• Expressing go/come + [verb – to do something]

1a. GO INTO ~  

レスラン に はいります。 | I go into the restaurant.

スーパー に はいります。 | I go into the supermarket.

1b. GO OUT OF ~

レスラン を でます。 | I go out of the restaurant.

うち を でます。 | I go out of my house.

Note that the particle changes when referring to entering and leaving.

2. [PLACE] + GO/ COME TO DO + [VERB] 

Some additional vocabulary:

なにか | something

どこか | somewhere/ anywhere

なにか のみたいですね。 | I want something to drink.

やすみに どこかへ いきましたか。| Did you go anywhere in the holidays?

To express that you go/ come to do an activity at a place: Because “going”/ “coming” is a verb, the action that comes before needs to be conjugated.

飲みものを 買います  | Buy drinks     – – – – >   飲みものを 買いに 

The verb in its ‘masu’ form conjugates to become ‘ni’ form.

スーパーへ 飲みものを 買いに 行きます。 |  I go to the supermarket to buy drinks.

ロンドンへ えぶんけんきゅ の べんきょうを しに きました。 | I came to London to study Literature.

3a. GO/ COME TO DO [VERB]

オーチャードへ 何を しに 行きますか。 | What do you do when you go to Orchard?

3b. GO/ COME TO DO [ACTION]

どこへ おみやげ を 買いに いきますか。| Where do you go to buy souvenirs?

 

Day #2.6.2

Lesson 11 (Part II)

• More counters in a sentence, different particles for different verbs

Examples of using different verbs and particles:

For existence, we use particle ‘が | ga’ and verb ‘あります | arimasu’

りんご が いつつ あります。| There are 5 apples.

For verbs like buying or asking for something at a shopping mall, we use the particle ‘を | o’

りんご を いつつ ください。 | 5 apples please.
りんご を いつつ 買いました。| I bought 5 apples.

じてんしゃ を 何だい 買ましたか。 | How many bicycles did you buy?
–  –  –  –  –  – にだい 買ました。| I bought 2.

みかん を いくつ 食べましたか。 | How many oranges did you eat?
–  –  –  –  –  – いつつ 食べました。| I ate 5.

にもつ を いくつ おくりましたか。| How many parcels did you send out?
–  –  –  –  –  – やっつ おくりました。 。 | I sent 8.

Waitress: いらっしゃいませ！| Welcome!
Customer: サンドイッチ を ふたつ ください。| 2 Sandwiches please.
Waitress: かしこまりました。| Certainly.

Waitress:いらっしゃいませ！| Welcome!
Customer: ジュース を ひとつ ください。| 1 Juice please
Waitress: かしこまりました。| Certainly.

Waitress: いらっしゃいませ！| Welcome!
Customer: アイスクリーム を よっつ ください | 4 Ice creams please
Waitress: かしこまりました。| Certainly.

We use counters to solve math problems too:

もんだいを つくりましょう | Let’s solve a problem

きのう りんごを みっつ 買いました。 今日 また ふたつ 買いました。 今、ぜんぶで いくつ ありますか。| Kinou ringo o mittsu kaimashita. kyou mata futatsu kaimashita. Ima, zenbude ikutsu arimasu ka? | Yesterday, I bought 3 apples. Today, I bought 2 more. Now, how many do I have altogether?

今、りんご が いつつ あります。| Ima, ringo ga itsutsu arimasu. | Now, I have 5 apples.

休みに りょこうを しました。おみやげの シャツを ８まい 買いました。友だちに ３まい あげましたそれから、ちちに １まいと ははに ２まい あげました。今、シャツは 何まい ありますか。| I went on a trip in the holidays. I bought 8 shirts as souvenirs. I gave 3 shirts to my friends. I gave 1 to my father and 1 to my mother. Now, how many shirts do I have?

今、シャツ が みっつ あります。| Now, I have 3 shirts.

 

Day #2.4.2

Lesson 10 (Part I)

• Describing the existence of things and people
• Describing the location using prepositions

1. EXISTENCE: There’re two main things to note before proceeding: a) In forming a sentence about the existence of things and people, the particle ‘が | ga’ is used. b) The verb ‘あります | arimasu’ means to exist, and this is used when referring to things (non animate objects). The verb ‘います | imasu’ also means to exist, but is used when referring to people, animals, etc (animate).

いす が あります。| Isu ga arimasu. | There is a chair.

先生 と 学生 が います。| Sensei to gakusei ga imasu. | There are students and a teacher.

いぬ が います。| Inu ga imasu. | There is a dog.

To add a location to the above, the particle ‘に | ni’ is used:

あそこ に くるま が あります。 | Asoko ni kuruma ga arimasu. | There is a car over there.

へや に ねこ が ります。| Heya ni neko ga rimasu. | There is a cat in the room.

公園 に おとこ の 人 と おんな の 人 が ります。| Kouen ni otoko no hito to onna no hito ga rimasu. | There is a man and a woman at the park.

2. PREPOSITION: The prepositional words are added to the description of the place, and this is situated in the beginning of the sentence.

テーブル の 上 に はな が あります。| Teburu no ue ni hana ga arimasu. | There are flowers on top the table.

テーブル の 下 に かばん が あります。 | Teburu no shita ni kaban ga arimasu. | There is a bag under the table.

たかい びる の ちかく に としょかん が あります。 Takai biru no chikaku ni toshokan ga arimasu. | There is a library beside the tall building.

Isu no shita ni neko ga rimasu. | Isu no shita ni neko ga rimasu. | There’s a cat under the chair.

れいぞうく の なか に いろいろ たべもの が あります。| Reizouku no naka ni iroiro tabemono ga arimasu. | There’s various of food in the refrigerator.

Day #1.11.2

Today we concluded our Japanese module, and next week will be the oral and listening tests. :O Did a mock listening paper today, and I think I really need to work on not excluding words and just listening for the key points. I also need to be alert and not let anyone push me out of the zone.

Things to work on:

1. Numbers and money

2. Telephone numbers

3. Days/ dates

4. Time

5. Activities

ROUND UP ON DIRECTION RELATED VERBS

I lend money to a friend. | Tomodachi ni okane o kashimasu. | ともだち に おかね を かします。

I borrow money from a friend | Tomodachi ni okane o karimasu. | ともだち に おかね を かります。

Day #1.10.1

Today we finished up on the last section of Lesson #6 and started on Lesson #7. Time is flying by too quickly! I’ve got a new assignment, another 400-word essay about “what I did last weekend”. Sounds pretty exciting, but I’ve got to make it my best composition cause it’s counted towards my grade. Anyway, the last section of Lesson #6 is all about inviting a friend to join you to do an activity, like asking your best friend out to have coffee. Previously we did “doing an activity with a friend”, so this is a step up.

Lesson #7 is the final lesson, and here’s the breakdown of what we will be doing:

• Describe “already” and “not yet”
• Describe “do ~ using ~”
• Family members
• Asking “what’s ~ in Japanese?”

Lesson #6

INVITING SOMEONE

Dialogue between two friends:

A: Why don’t we have coffee together? | Isshoni kohi wo nomimasen ka? | いっしょに コーヒー を のみません か。

B: Sounds good. | E, I desu ne. | ええ、いいですね。

A: Well, let’s go to Starbucks. | Ja, Sutabakkusu e ikimashou.| じゃ、スターバックス へ いきましょう。

B: Wakarimashita. | わかりました

When inviting someone to join you in an activity, the verb needs to be conjugated. In the case of asking “Why don’t we…”, the verb ‘nomimasu’ —> ‘nomimasen’. When signalling to the other person, “let’s go”, the verb ‘ikimasu’ —> ‘ikimashou’

Lesson #7

DESCRIBING “ALREADY | もう” & “NOT YET | まだ” 

Q:

Have you already eaten breakfast? | Mou asagohan o tabemashita ka? | もう あさごはん を たべました か。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  Yes I already ate. | Hai, mou tabemashita. | はい、もう たべました。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  No, not yet. | Ie, mada desu. | いいえ、まだです。

Q:

Have you done your homework already? | Mou shukudai o shimashita ka? |もう しゅくだい を しました か。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  Yes I’ve already done it. | Hai, mou shimashita. | はい、もう しました。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  No, not yet. | Ie, mada desu. | いいえ、まだ です。

DESCRIBING “USING”

The particle used to describe “by what means” is ‘de | で’. It is also used for transportation like we learnt in Lesson #4. Besides being a direction marker, it is a “means marker”.

Cut paper with/ using scissors. | Hasami de kami o kirimasu. | はさみ で かみ を きります。

There’re two objects in this sentence, and the placement is different from an English one. In English, the object that one is using is placed at the end. In Japanese, this is the opposite. The object that you are using opens the sentence. Literally translated, ‘Hasami de kami o kirimasu’ = “Scissors | using | paper | cut”

Send a report by fax. | Fakusu de repoto o okurimasu. | ファクスで レポートを おくります。

Eat rice using chopsticks. | Ohashi de gohan o tabemasu. | おはしで ごはんを たべます。

Q:

“How” do you eat sushi? |Nan de osushi o tabemasu ka? | なんで おすしを たべますか。

(A literal translation would be “by what means” do you eat sushi?)

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  I eat using chopsticks. | Ohashi de tabemasu. | おはしで たべます。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  I eat using my hands. | Te de tabemasu. | てで たべます。

The particle has many uses, and another important one involves it being used in sentences like “I write a report in Japanese”. The literal translation is “I write a report using Japanese”. Again, the particle ‘de’ is a marker for “using/ with”.

I write a report using Japanese. | Nihongo de repoto o kakimasu. | にほんご で レポートを かきます。

The sentence structure is similar to describing “using” as explained above. The subject that is being used, in this case, Japanese, opens the sentence.

Q:

“Using what” do you write your report? | Nan de repoto o kakimasu ka? | なにごで レポートを かきますか。

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  I write using Japanese. | Nihongo de kakimasu. | にほんごで かきます。

ASKING “WHAT’S ~ IN JAPANESE”

This section covers how to ask a subject in Japanese. The particle ‘de’ is used as a means marker again.

How do you say “thank you” in Japanese? | “Thank you” wa nihongo de nan desu ka? | “Thank you” わ にほんご で なん です か。

“Thank you” in Japanese is ‘arigatou gozaimasu’. | “Thank you” wa nihongo de ‘arigatou gozaimasu’ desu.|

“Thank you” は にほんごで ‘ありがとう ございます’ です。

Chopstick culture! The Japanese are rather particular about table etiquette, and rightfully so! Here’re some taboos that you should not do when you’re in Japan, or rather, anywhere for that matter; it’s a good idea to cultivate such habits!

おはし マナー:

Day #1.9.1

Previous Lesson Recap: 

Time/ Period opens the sentence. E.g “I went to Tokyo last year” / “I went to Tokyo last year in June” / “I went to Tokyo in 2012” >>>>>> Open the sentence in Japanese with ‘last year | kyonen | きょうねん’

S:

I went to Tokyo last year. | Kyonen Tokyo e ikimashita. | きょうねん とうきょうえ いきました。

I went to Tokyo in June last year. | Kyonen no roku gatsu ni Tokyo e ikimashita. | きょねん の ろくがつ に とうきょ え いきました。

I went to Tokyo in 2012. | 2012 nen ni Tokyo e ikimashita. | 2012 ねん に とうきょ え いきました。

We use the particle ‘ni | に’ as a time and date marker. ***not to be used for certain time markers (see Day #8.2)

LESSON #6

Lesson 6 is about describing daily activities like eating, watching TV, playing sports, as well as inviting someone to do activities together. 🙂 We also start on Kanji.

Check out the Vocabulary section for different activities in Japanese.

PLACE + VERB [Action word and place] 

To phrase where an action is taking place, the particle ‘de | で’ is used. It’s also used as a direction marker, “by”. Note that the verb is placed at the end of the sentence, unlike in the English Language.

I study at school. | Watashi wa gakko de benkyoshimasu. | わたし は がっこう で べ んきょします。

OBJECT + VERB 

In the case of doing ~, ~ being the object, the same phrasing as above is applied. The verb is placed at the end of the sentence. To link the object and verb, the particle ‘wo | を’ is used. It is an object marker, used after the grammatical object.

In the case of “eat ~”: the object “~” comes first, followed by the verb “eat”. Simply put: Object + *particle wo + Verb 

S:

[present tense]

I eat toast. | Tosuto wo tabeshimasu. | トースト を たべします。

I eat rice. | Gohan wo tabeshimasu. | ごはん を たべします。

[past tense]

I drank orange juice. | Orenji jusu wo nomishimashita. | オレンジ ジュース を のみしました。

[including time period – always in the beginning of the sentence]

I ate a sandwich this morning. | Kesa sandoichi wo tabeshimashita. | けさ サンドイッチ を たべしました。

I eat toast and egg every morning. | Mainichi tosuto to tamago wo tabeshimasu. | まいにち トースト と たまご を たべします。

[negative]

I didn’t eat anything. | Nani mo tabeshimasu. | なに も たべします。

Q:

What did you eat this morning? | Kesa nani wo tabeshimashita ka? | けさ なに を たべしました か。

What do you drink every morning? | Mainichi nani wo nomishimasu ka? | まいにち なに を のみします か。

PLACE + OBJECT + VERB 

Sequence: Place + *particle de + Object + *particle wo + Verb

S:

I ate a hamburger at home. | Uchi de hanbaga wo tabeshimashita. | うち で ハンバーガー を たべしました。

FREQUENCY 

1. Always |

2. Often |

3. Sometimes | Tokidoki

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –  –

KANJI 

We start off with 10 Kanji words – the basics. A single Kanji word can have multiple readings and meanings.

Day #5.1

Today we learnt things related to prices:

1. How to ask for the price of an object
2. How to tell the price of an object

ASKING THE PRICE

‘Ikura desu ka | いくら です か’ roughly translated means “How much is this?”

Q:

How much is this book? | Kono hon wa ikura desu ka? |  この ほん は いくら です か。

TELLING THE PRICE

–  –  –  –  –  –  –  That book is 345 yen. | Sono hon wa 345 en desu. | その ほん は 345えん です。

Prices in dollars and cents are read as ‘doru’ and ‘sento’.

E.G. $10 | Juu doru | じゅう どる

E.G. 30¢ | San juu sento | セント

We also learnt how to speak in a Department Store with regards to an item that we wish to purchase.

At the department store:

1.

Q: Where is this necktie from? | Kore wa doko no nekutai desu ka? | これ は どこ の ねくたい です か。

A: Italy. | Itaria desu. | イタリア です。

Q: How much is it? | Ikura desu ka? | いくら です か。

A: 7,300 yen. | 7,300 en desu. | 7,300 えん です。

2.

Q: Where is this watch from? | Kore wa doko no toke desu ka? | これ は どこ の とけ です か。

A: Switzerland. | Suisu desu. | スイス です。

Q: How much is it? | Ikura desu ka? | いくら です か。

A: 18,800 yen. | 18,800 en desu. | 18,800 えん です。

Besides asking where an item is from and how much it costs, we also add the phrases ‘0 mise te kudasai’ and ‘o kudasai’ which mean “please show me” and “please give me” respectively.

At the wine section in the Department Store:

Q: Excuse me, please show me this bottle of wine. | Sumimasen, sono wain o misete kudasai. | すみません、その ワイン を みせて ください。

A: Here you go. | Hai, dozo. | はい、どぞ。

Q: Is this wine from France? | Sore wa Furansu no wain desu ka? | それ は フランス の ワイン です か。

A: No, it’s from Italy. | Ie, Itaria no wain desu. | いいえ、イタリア の ワイン です。

Q: How much is it? | Ikura desu ka? | いくら です か。

A: 4500 yen. | 4500 en desu. |  4500 えん です。

Q: Then, please give it to me. | Ja, kore o kudasai. | じゃ、これ を ください。