Mae Ni & Ato De  

Level 3 Tony

“Mae Ni” means “Before Something” and “Ato De” means “After Something”. When using “Mae Ni” the verbs before it must be a Normal Form (ie. Kaku (Write), Taberu (Eat), Kau (Buy)) where the verbs used before “Ato De” shall be past tense (ie. Kaita, Tabeta, Katta)

Example
I have to wash my hands before taking breakfast – Asa gohan o taberu mae ni, te o (arau)araimasu.

After taking breakfast, I have to wash my clothes – Asa gohan o tabeta ato de, sentaku o shimasu

I have to tidy up the kitchen, before changing my clothes – Kigaeru mae ni, daidokoro o (katazukeru)katazukemasu

After changing my clothes, I’ll be going out – Kigaeta ato de, (dekakeru)dekakemasu

Meaning : Asa Gohan (Breakfast), Sentaku (Laundry), Kigaeru (Changing Clothes), Daidokoro (Kitchen), Katazukeru (Tidy Up), Dekakeru (Go Out / Depart)

 

Dare Demo, Itsu Demo, Doko Demo  

Level 3 Tony

Dare Demo = Whoever / Anybody
Itsu Demo = Whenever / Anytime
Doko Demo = Wherever / Anywhere
Nan Demo = Whatever / Anything

Examples
Q : What do you like in sports? – Supo-tsu wa nani ga suki desu ka?
A : I like anything in sports – Supo-tsu wa nan demo suki desu

Q : Where do you like to go this Saturday? – Kondo no doyōbi, doko e ikimashō ka?
A : Anywhere will do – Doko demo ii desu

Q : When do you want to go to the sea? – Itsu, umi e ikimashō ka?
A : Anytime will do – Istu demo ii desu

Q : Who would you choose? – Dare ga (erabu)erabimasu ka?
A : Anybody – Dare demo ii desu
Meaning : Supo-tsu (Sports in Katakana), Suki (Like), Kondo (This “occassion” / This Time), Doyōbi (Saturday),Umi (Sea), Erabu (Choose)

 

Conversation  

Conversation and Level 3 Tony

It’s been a while since my last post. I was a bit busy in my job.

Today I will cover conversation for what we have learned the last couple of weeks.

A : Excuse Me, Can I borrow the phone? – Sumimasen, denwa o (kariru)karite mo ii desu ka?
B : Yes, please. – Hai, dōzo
Meaning : Sumimasen (Excuse Me), Denwa (Telephone), Kariru (Borrow)

A : Can I switch on the radio? – Rajio o (tsukeru)tsukete mo ii desu ka?
B : Sure but don’t turn the sound too loud – Ii desu yo. Demo, oto o amari (ookii)ookiku shinaide kudasai ne.
Meaning : Rajio (Radio), Tsukeru (Switch On), Oto (Voice / Sound), Ookii (Big)

A : Am I not allow to enter this classroom? – Kono kyōshitsu ni (hairu)haitte wa ikemasen ka?
B : Yes, nobody is allow to enter. It is in a midst of exam now. – Hai, dare mo haitte wa ikemasen. Ima, shiken chū desu
Meaning : Hairu (Enter / Go In), Kyōshitsu (Classroom), Shiken (Examination), Chū (In a midst of)

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