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322 Responses to “Contact Form”

1. Richard Says:
   August 16th, 2006 at 2:23 pm

   Thanks a BUNCH for all of your helpful entries. I appreciate your efforts!

2. heather Says:
   August 26th, 2006 at 9:58 am

   great little conversations! this seems pretty useful.

   just wondering if you were considering using kanji/kana in addition to the romaji? most japanese learning resources seem to advise learning hiragana and not reading romaji.

   these conversations are at my level, but it’s slow to read romaji. :/

3. Tony Says:
   August 26th, 2006 at 10:32 am

   Initially, I was using Hiragana / Katakana but then most readers requested me to use Romaji. I may use Romaji + Kana in future lessons.

   Thanks for your suggestions.

4. benedicta Says:
   September 7th, 2006 at 1:41 pm

   A very useful site for learning basic Japanese!! Thank you for the effort!! =)

   I just found this blog today and had just started on level 1…

   btw, are u residing in Tokyo??

5. Sanju Says:
   September 26th, 2006 at 7:15 pm

   The basic purpose of any language is communication. And i felt that benedicta has kept this in mind while entering the lessons, as the lessons describes itself the superb touch of native words at the same time required knowledge for jlpt. Simply the best.
   
   Keep it up benedicta, you are doing a great job. Hope you will include more coloquel terms in future lessons. Keep the site alive.

   Thanks Sanju

6. tfl Says:
   October 4th, 2006 at 7:25 am

   so where\’s the rss feed?

7. uhiha Says:
   November 6th, 2006 at 7:05 pm

   はじめまして
   なまえはUCHIHA　DIDIK　
   おれはインドネシアン人
   can you give me free ebook complete to study about all of nihongo structure, when kanji is used, and link that provide talking lively. thanks ..

8. Tony Says:
   November 6th, 2006 at 8:16 pm

   >> Uhiha
   Sorry, I dont have any Japanese Lesson Ebook. In fact your Japanese is not bad.

9. uchiha Says:
   November 7th, 2006 at 1:19 pm

   こんにちわ
   あなたはだれですか。
   どこからいきましたか。
   can you chat with me in yahoo messanger or skype?
   私に　チャト　を　して　ください。
   わかりますか。
   ありがとございます。

10. Jamaipanese Says:
    December 25th, 2006 at 10:33 am

    really good site I will definitely link to you from mine

11. Tony Says:
    December 25th, 2006 at 10:53 am

    Thanks Jamaipanese for your support.

12. penpals Says:
    March 1st, 2007 at 7:20 pm

    Hello, would you like to exchange links?

    Penpas with photos

13. Ryan Says:
    March 23rd, 2007 at 7:42 am

    Hi I’ve been reading your blog for awhile and would like to do a blog link trade with you.

    The address is:
    http://ajapaneseandchinesemajor.aznaddict.com

    I understand the name is ridiculously long, so if you would like the text link to just be “AZNaddict” that would be fine.
    Please let me know when you’ve added the link and I will add yours too.
    Good luck with your work!

    Best,

    Ryan

14. rusty Says:
    November 3rd, 2007 at 10:57 am

    hi .. i’ve just read your blog .. it’s a good one i think ..
    say, do you know where i can find a partner to practice japanese conversation ?
    i really want to having a conversation in japanese .. can you please help me ?
    thanks before .. m(_ _)m

15. Tony Says:
    November 3rd, 2007 at 3:37 pm

    Thanks Rusty,
    sorry, I don’t but you can check back here for any lesson update. It is better for you to go through every single (from level 1) lesson here to understand the basic usage.

    Thanks

16. sk Says:
    December 19th, 2007 at 1:16 pm

    Thanks for all your lessons. I will continue coming to this site.

17. william klein Says:
    December 27th, 2007 at 12:02 am

    Hi,

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    If you are interested, please let me know so we can discuss further details. I can make you a superb offer.

    Looking for your response.
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18. HP Says:
    January 8th, 2008 at 5:47 pm

    Tony-san,

    Konnichiwa. Watashi wa Malaysia ni sunde imasu. 1-nen nihon-go o benkyou shite imasu. nihon-go wa muzukashii desu ga, omoishiroi desu, totemo suki desu yo. demo, watashi no nihon-go amari wakarimasen, sukoshi dekimasu.
    i would like to thank you for the free lesson, it is very helpful especially the conversation part. although i am learning it for a year, but very weak in speaking.
    Arigatou gozaimashita!

19. Tony Says:
    January 8th, 2008 at 6:09 pm

    >>HP
    Dō itashimashite!!!

    I am glad you like the lesson.
    Thanks

20. romyr Says:
    January 22nd, 2008 at 5:29 pm

    Tony-san,
    motto nihongo ni tsuite o benkyo shitai desu. i am taking up nihongo lessons but what i want to learn is about constructing compound sentences. i would like to know how to use conjunctions in nihongo. just like: “i don’t know THAT you are still a student”, “please tell him THAT i will not go to school”, “she said THAT she likes you.”.. as we can see, this sentence is composed of 2 simple sentences: “she said.” and “she likes you.” and then they are connected by the conjunction “THAT”.

21. romyr Says:
    January 22nd, 2008 at 5:37 pm

    hi Tony,
    can you please translate these following phrases to nihongo?:
    1. have you seen her at the school?
    2. we need to hurry up!
    3. i don’t smoke, drink liquor nor take illegal drugs.
    4. i forgot to bring my bag.
    5. i’m still not good in speaking nihongo.
    6. i know that it’s not right to tell her.
    7. i work for my family.
    8. my mother is taking care of her sister who has a cancer.
    9. my father has been working on the company for 20 years.

22. romyr Says:
    January 22nd, 2008 at 5:42 pm

    tony, i apologize, i think i’m over-active, but i just really want to learn because i’m really interested and i love the language. i’m glad that there’s someone like you who willingly extends efforts to teach us for free. thanks so much, your site is really a great help!!! please explain the grammatic construction and nihongo sentence rules applied as you translate those sentences (onegai shimasu). anyway i am still a 4th year college student, and i am a scholar of a japanese agency, i look forward of working in japan in the future.

23. romyr Says:
    January 22nd, 2008 at 5:46 pm

    also i want to learn about nihongo verb conjugation in the passive voice (example: the cat is killed by the dog, the teacher is criticized), i hope you could post a discussion about that in your site so i could learn more, i know this is too advance. thank you.. anyway i am a filipino, a japan-obsessed filipino. hehe. i do hope to hear from you soon.

24. Jon Says:
    January 24th, 2008 at 4:16 pm

    Hello,

    I help run Celebpulp.com and I am trying to spread the link love by linking to other blogs that I think our visitors would like to visit. Do you mind if I link to your website: nihongo.anthonet.com ?

    Since Celebpulp.com gets a few thousand visitors on the site each day, I’m sure some of them will enjoy your site as well. I will NOT link to your website until you reply telling me it is OK with you. Do you think you can link to Celebpulp.com? I look forward to your reply.

    Jon

25. May Says:
    March 12th, 2008 at 5:00 pm

    Hi Tony, just found your site today. Thanks so much for doing this, I agree it is a great way to keep using the language. I have always been interested in the language and have passed Level 4 of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. Since then, I have also been looking for someone to proctise speaking the language.

    I read Rusty’s message on looking for someone to speak Japanese with. Can you put me in touch with him/her.

    Thanks Tony! I will be visiting your site more often.

    Rusty, if you are reading this, please respond. Thanks!

26. Tony Says:
    March 12th, 2008 at 5:23 pm

    Hi May,
    I am extremely happy that you like this site. I believe Rusty will receive your message and contact you soon.

27. Chritine Boon Says:
    May 7th, 2008 at 12:30 pm

    Deat Tony, thanks for providing such a useful site. It really helps as I am a beginner in this language. I need your help to translate some medical documents which my daughter had incurred during her youth exchange programe in Japan. May I have your e-mail so that I can forward the documents to you. Thank you and regards, Chrisitne

28. Christine Boon Says:
    May 9th, 2008 at 10:07 pm

    Hi Tony,
    Thanks for your help.

29. Tony Says:
    May 9th, 2008 at 11:58 pm

    you are always welcome, Christine

30. Ide Says:
    May 17th, 2008 at 10:17 pm

    TONY-SAMA,

    Konbanwa.Watashiwa Ide to moushimasu. Hajimemashite.

    Actually, I lived and studied in Japan for a few years before. I’am now living in mare-shia, and working in nihon no kaisha. Previously I used to do a lot of Japanese language related jobs but after some organizational structure change (about 2 years ago), my job has limited usage of Japanese and less conversation with Japanese staff.

    My nihongo noryoku wa dondon warukunattekite, saikin iitai kotowa umaku tsutaerarenai. Do you happen to know anyone or any organization needing Japananese Language service tokuni mare-shia ni aru dantai/kaisha. Or could yo give an suggestion how to keep up my nihongo?

    By the way, I like reading mangga and I hope I can translate my favourite mangga and publish it in mare-shia.

    soreja….

31. rob Says:
    June 20th, 2008 at 1:09 am

    Hello!

    Very nice and helpful site!! Keep up the good work!

    Thanks!!

32. Tony Says:
    June 20th, 2008 at 7:15 pm

    Thanks Rob. My Pleasure

33. Rashid Says:
    June 20th, 2008 at 8:39 pm

    Nice site, where’s contact form by the way? Just curious!

34. Tony Says:
    June 20th, 2008 at 8:41 pm

    You can just fill up the comment here.

    Thanks

35. SAHID Says:
    July 19th, 2008 at 12:47 am

    Dear San,
    I am very interested to learn Nihogo. But I can’t proper Knowledge. I admitted Khulna University, Bangladesh. But they desert not Nihongo no Kiso Translate Japanese, English, C/D & Bangla. KU can’t Supply this book which
    I can’t achieve Nihongo. Please sent me some book without
    okany.

    Sahid Sarowar
    Nahar Peace Garden
    202/1 Tootpara Main Road, Khulna -9100
    Bangladesh.
    E-mail : sumon.gpk@gmail.com

36. Sreedhar Durgavarjula Says:
    August 8th, 2008 at 12:49 pm

    Great work..Upto my knowledge it can be say ごんばりま in japanese.

37. Tony Says:
    August 8th, 2008 at 7:41 pm

    Thanks Sreedhar,
    It should be がんばります 😀 Thanks

38. Thomas Says:
    September 3rd, 2008 at 10:09 pm

    “Edojidai started around the year 1600″ – not 1600 years ago – check that lesson.

39. 山田 Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 8:18 pm

    ありごっと　ございます

40. Tony Says:
    September 9th, 2008 at 11:37 pm

    Ｈｉ　山田、
    Should be ありがとう　ございます

41. Jeffrey Lin Says:
    October 1st, 2008 at 4:42 pm

    Thankyou for posting this blog I will add your blog to my favorites very useful.

    This blog has covered and exceeded what I’m learning in Japanese 201 in University. It’s very generous of you spending your time for posting your thoughts and lessons.

    Ｔｏｎｙ さんの　日本語　は　とてもじょずです　そして　TONY さんの　BLOGは　とても　べんりです。ありがとう　ごさいます。

42. Tony Says:
    October 1st, 2008 at 9:19 pm

    Hi Jeffrey,
    Thanks for your support. I am extremely glad that you like this blog. Your Japanese is great too 😉

    Thanks again.

43. rainier Says:
    November 21st, 2008 at 11:38 am

    help how to find site the command like right face, left face like that

44. Jeffrey Lin Says:
    November 21st, 2008 at 5:11 pm

    Oh do you mean like direction in Japanese.

    Right – Migi 右
    Left – Hidari 左
    Beside you – Tonari 横
    Between – Aida 間
    Behind – Ushiro 後ろ
    In Front – Maie 前
    Straight ahead – Massugu まっすぐ
    Above – Uue 上
    Below – Shita 下

45. vader Says:
    February 8th, 2009 at 9:07 pm

    Hey! Any1 could translate 2 words for me?
    the chasm
    edge

    plzthx

46. Theresa Says:
    February 17th, 2009 at 8:03 pm

    konbanwah!
    watashi wa tasukete onegai shimasu?…
    could you please translate these phrases?…

    Ai no tame ni
    Tsuyokunareru
    Anata ga iru kagiri

    Nando datte
    Yarinaoseru
    Ashita ga aru kagiri

    I know ai is love and ashita is ashita is tomorrow but what is aru kagiri and these other words?….

    domo arigatou guzaimasu in advance!
    domo arigatou guzaimasu sensei tony sama! 😀

47. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    February 17th, 2009 at 9:11 pm

    This is about art more than translation – these are lyrics, right?

    Here goes:

    Because of love (tame = because/reason)
    makes us/you/me stronger (pronoun is not included = ref context)
    because of you (or because I have you)

    Many times
    We/I can do it over
    as long as we have tomorrow

    Kagiri describes a condition – describes being within a limit or simply “because.”

    Poetry is best in the original – above is not an attempt at recreating the feel of the original.

    BTW, it’s “wo tasukete” not “wa”

48. Tony Says:
    February 17th, 2009 at 11:22 pm

    Nice, Thomas. The sentences are not conversation type but rather a rhythm or something. What Thomas translated is the best to suit the translation.

49. Theresa Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 1:13 pm

    yup! it is not a conversation. it’s a song…. I liked the song but there are words I dont get to understand much.. hehheh! so much for trying hard.. 😀 demo… domo arigatou guzaimasu for answering my querry. 😀

50. Theresa Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 6:32 pm

    Konbanwah!
    could you please tell me when to use the word “aniki” and “oniichan”. because both have the same meaning. Is it ok if I use either of the words any time?

51. Tony Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 6:46 pm

    Hi Theresa,
    Aniki is normally used when you tell someone about your brother

    Oniichan is used when you call your brother

52. Theresa Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 8:19 pm

    ahhh.. kaya pala…. ok. thank you! 😀

53. Theresa Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 8:36 pm

    I sent a note to a friend of mine and it goes like this…

    anata wa zottou tomodachi san!
    iashiteru zottou!
    anata wa tomodachi san… kyunde, ashita, zottou!….
    domo arigatou tomodachi san!

    is it ok? I think I have a wrong grammar here. heheheh! 😀 tnx again!

54. Tony Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 8:41 pm

    Hi Theresa,
    It would be easier if you could put it in English on what you are expressing. Thanks

55. Theresa Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 8:54 pm

    hehhehh! gome nasai!…… i was just trying. domo arigarou!

56. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    February 19th, 2009 at 9:03 pm

    Theresa, also, since you appear to know ‘some’ Japanese – try to pay attention to your spelling – applies to your English as well. Try reading your own writing out loud – that might help you catch many problems.

    Long and short vowel sounds are very important – e.g. “ou” vs “o” – check your dictionary.

    Also, try to graduate to at least hiragana/katakana – that will also catch many of your problems. Study a few common kanji – that also helps put the writing where it should be.

57. Theresa Says:
    March 14th, 2009 at 6:56 pm

    yadda! yadda!.. anata ganbatte tomodachi minna san! watashi tasukete onegai shimasu wakaremasu nihingo!… watashi ureshii anata tasuketedesu!…

    is this ok?….. tanx in advance!

58. KomaGawad Says:
    April 9th, 2009 at 9:26 am

    I can’t find this in my basic grammar dictionary (A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammr by Makino and Tsutsui) 切符　でないんですが,　どう　したら　いいです。 So I know this first part before the comma means something about a ticket and not leaving, and the second part means something like “How do I do this”. My problem is that たらいいです as a grammar unit is not in my dictionary. Is this something like “When is this a good thing”, or “If this is a good thing to do…”

59. Tony Says:
    April 9th, 2009 at 11:16 am

    Hi KomaGawad,
    You can refer to one of my lesson about “~tara”. There I have an explanation about the usage.

60. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 12:12 pm

    Konnichiwa minna-san

    can you kindly translate this sentences:

    ~Keep safe & in touch. Comment back ok?~
    ~I can’t understand Japanese.~
    ~I miss you too my friend.~
    ~I’m not really expert at speaking Japanese but I know some.~

    and can I ask some questions?… etoo~ is hajimemashite, douzo yoroshiku, yoroshiku onegaishimasu & kochira koso is the same?.. I’m really confused about that even if those words are just simple greetings.

    arigatou gozaimasu

    yoi ichinichi o

    ^_~

61. Tony Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 1:53 pm

    Hi Otaku,
    ~I can’t understand Japanese.~
    Watashi ga Nihongo wa wakarimasen

    ~I miss you too my friend.~
    Anata ga inaku naru to, sabishiku narimasu

    ~I’m not really expert at speaking Japanese but I know some.~
    Nihongo wa umakunai desu keredomo, sukoshii hanasemasu ga

    Well they are the same. The polite way when meeting a new friend would be Hajimemashite, dōzo yoroshiku onegai shimasu

    Hope this help. Thanks

62. KomaGawa Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 4:54 pm

    Sorry for not checking my name. It is for the river through our neighborhood here. Even my computer dictionary doesn’t have the 漢字　for this character. It is based on the Koreans who came here a long time ago.Koma.

    Well, I was interested to read the list of comments. I wonder how many are still seriously studying? I am making a VERY serious effort this year, and still going strong in April.

    I have several questions, but I will respectfully try to learn more about your site before I just give you a list of grammar points. I have 1 grammar dictionary, and a text with the answers (very expensive, those answers 😉 I suppose I am interested in a community as much as anything. I don’t meet anyone studying Japanese only English (this includes my family)

    本当に　平仮名　と　片仮名　は　日本語の勉強前進　だと思う。

63. Tony Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 5:42 pm

    Hi Komagawa,
    Hope you can learn something new here. Enjoy your reading. Thanks

64. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 10:05 pm

    thanks Tony!… thank u very much…

    god bless

65. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 10:08 pm

    how about the “keep safe & keep in touch. Comment back okay?”

    thanks minna-san… this site/page is so cool! Sugoi! ^_~

    god bless

66. Tony Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 10:21 pm

    Hi Otaku_mcc
    Keep Safe – Ansen ni tamochimasu
    Keep in touch – Mata renraku shimasu

    Thanks

67. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 13th, 2009 at 10:39 pm

    thanks… how about “omatase nee” ?…

    I’m really sorry for asking so many questions… I was just really interested in learning Japanese.

    How did u learn Nihonggo?…

    more power to you Tony.. this is a big help

    thanks

68. Tony Says:
    April 14th, 2009 at 5:54 pm

    Hi Otaku_mcc,
    Omatase comes from the word Mataseru (Keep someone waiting). This word comes from Matsu (Wait). Adding “O” in front is a polite form. Most of the time “Omatase shimashita” will be used to express “Sorry for keep you waiting”

    I was graduated and worked in Japan for 23 years.

    Hope this help. Thanks

69. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 14th, 2009 at 10:45 pm

    wow… that was really amazing.. sorry for asking so many questions… can I ask again?…

    can u translate this the situation:

    girl1: can you help me with this?
    girl2: sure. It’s nothing…

    thank u very much… this really helps… all of your answers really helped me a lot…

    more power

    ^__^

70. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 12:27 am

    Seriously people – if you can’t even spell correctly in English, you will never, ever, learn Japanese. If one thing is required to learn Japanese, it is attention to detail. Persistence also helps.

    As KomaGawa said – learn hiragana and katakana – the whole romaji business only cripples you. Why? Because as long as you think in romaji, your mind will be parked in whatever western language you speak and you will never be able to grasp Japanese grammar – and forget about ever getting the pronunciation right.

    Pardon the rant but it annoys me to see the many inane translation requests from people who can’t even be bothered to try.

    Learning comes from making mistakes => please show Anthony and everybody else who reads this block that you at least have tried !!!

    Thomas

    PS
    I passed nihongo-nouryoku-shiken’s highest 1-kyuu level 15 years ago – and I didn’t take any prep classes for it either…

    Japanese is my fifth language – and I have focused on all of them.

    My stack of notebooks from writing down and looking up Japanese expressions, grammar points and of course kanji exercises was substantial.

71. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 10:39 am

    well Thomas, how can I try if I didn’t have any basic background about Nihonggo?

    In our school, Japanese is NOT included in our subjects that’s why I’m asking help. I want to learn Nihonggo because I was having a hard time speaking with my step Japanese dad. And the problem here is I can’t understand him when he’s speaking English because it sounds like Japanese too(I mean the accent is Japanese). When he’s talking to us in English, he was like speaking Japanese and not to mention his English skills are not good at all. I’m not angry but I was just asking some advice. I know I really sound sarcastic & harsh. Well SORRY for that Thomas.

    more power. God bless.

    ~thanks~

72. Otaku_mcc Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 10:50 am

    by the way, do you have any Japanese lessons that doesn’t involved money? Thomas said that learning comes from your mistakes and that was a good point of view. APOLOGIES ^_~

    ~thanks~

73. KomaGawa Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 6:30 pm

    I thought about the issue after I made my posting. I think tony encountered or encounters many visitors to this site who don’t have the software or freeware to write hiragana, and that is the reason he went along with romaji. I agree that romaji is something that was typically designed to prolong the entry level learning process. The average person if they concentrate can master both hiragana and katakana in 3 weeks or less.

    Finally it is impressive to meet someone like Thomas who has a talent for languages (or is it puzzles?)

74. KomaGawa Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 6:33 pm

    Ohhh one more thing, Research on Emails communications shows that people come across A LOT stronger in writing than speaking face to face. So we all do this. I think Thomas is just showing this tendency.

75. Tony Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 7:03 pm

    >> KomaGawa,
    You will be able to write hiragana and katakana with Windows. You need to install Asian Language. When I started this site, all my posting was in Hiragana/Katakana and many readers (80%+) requested to translate into Romaji. I did include hiragana/katakana for some lesson (i.e http://nihongo.anthonet.com/shimau-shimaimasu/)

    >> Thomas
    That is great. Before I sat for 1-kyū exam 23 years ago, I have attended a 6 months Japanese class in Tokyo. Since I am a chinese, kanji wasn’t a problem for me since 1-kyū contains mostly kanji. For an American to pass 1-kyū, it was definitely not an easy task. Great work.

76. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    April 15th, 2009 at 9:13 pm

    I had prepared a post with FREE resources on how to enable Japanese on whatever computer you have, but WordPress denied this (too “spammy”). So, unless you are terminally lazy, go to Google and search for “enable Japanese keyboard input” and you’ll get plenty of ideas.

    If WordPress permits one URL per post, I’ll include this one:
    http://www.guidetojapanese.org/hiragana_ex.html
    Learning to write by hand is critical – the above is a FREE resource. As KomaGawa says, it’ll only take you a few weeks to master.

    No more excuses – go do it!

    Thomas

    PS
    Tony – I did not have a US passport at the time I passed 1-kyuu…

77. Tony Says:
    April 16th, 2009 at 11:00 am

    Hi Thomas, I thought you are an American and thanks for the link. I believe many readers here will find it useful. For a full set of Hiragana/Katakana, all readers can follow read the Pronunciation section

78. KomaGawa Says:
    April 29th, 2009 at 6:12 pm

    Interesing, Thomas in Atlanta…My given name is Thomas, but I changed my last name…
    1.Tony, I wanted to log in “blogroll” as KomaGawa, with this email address but I couldn’t do.
    2. Since our conversation about romaji vs hiragana I have been doing alot of self-observation as I study. I have 2 books, one is a Japanese dictionary with romaji translation of the kanji/hiragana and a standard text, しんにほんごのきそ　（Don’t know if this has a kanji meaning or not. Probably many students know this line of texts. As you know it is 100% ヒラガナ(my joke) and you have to buy another expensive book to get the English answers. So most people don’t. When I am studying that book, my brain is forced to become used to the 平仮名 and after slaving away for a few hours, I’m ok, and if I jump to the computer for a break and come here, reading the romaji at first is really tedious. However the dictionary is in ロマジ and the Japanese 仮名 is really tiny (I really dislike this formatting quirk of Japanese publishers, they love to make the 仮名　small against a white page grrrrr! and folks, my eyesight ain’t what yours’ is like. But I notice that I will read the ロマジ first and then look to the 仮名 glancing back and forth. Finally I will try to force myself to stay with the 仮名. All this is to say, that it depends on what you’re used to. And I know it is slow, but you should go with the 仮名 as much as your brain can stand it. Besides this site has alot of ロマジ anyway.

    I have some Japanese problems, but I am working around them for now, because I am too lazy to read your on-site grammar text here to see if they are more helpful. Until I do, I won’t ask you.

79. KomaGawa Says:
    April 29th, 2009 at 6:13 pm

    Oh, And Thomas, I grew up in Rome, and went to GSU for a while, alot of high school and family members are GT grads.

80. Tony Says:
    April 29th, 2009 at 7:30 pm

    I am trying to figure out how I can include Hiragana & Katakana in my next post so that it doesn’t look that cramp.

81. KomaGawa Says:
    May 1st, 2009 at 9:07 pm

    hey, Pretty soon I will be up with the Jr. High people (lol) of foreign language learners, I just went and bought the blue, Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar. If image counts for any thing (lol) I’m on my way. See you after the end of Golden Week!

82. KomaGawa Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 9:39 pm

    Ok Tony, I have a question my dictionary is not helpful in explaining. the wa-topic is まで　に and 前に. The dictionary says this is equivalent to “by” and “before” in English. Which, to my naive mind, means “there is really NO DIFFERENCE. Then the dictionary gives examples of this “”difference”
    来月までに　この仕事　を　します。and duhh.来月前にこの仕事　を　します。 (I will finish this work by next month. I will finish this work before next month.　までに is “correct”. Just in case some folks couldn’t read my text’s Japanese 😉 or 授業　前に　湯便局　に　行く。　and the same sentence with までに. In this this latter sentence, 前に is “correct”.
    I just don’t see this difference in these two English sentences. Maybe there is more of a difference in Japanese than in English and the authors are vainly (in my case) trying to appeal to the English “differences” as a way of showing the similarities, in this case, between Japanese and English grammar thinking. Sorry, but my dense mind can’t grasp it. Can you help.
    I have more questions, but first things first.
    regards,

83. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 10:32 pm

    Don’t pursue the legal field. In formal English there is a clear distinction – “by” and “before” don’t cover the same time space, so to speak. Two examples:

    “I’ll get it done by September” = it will be done before the end of September.

    “I’ll get it done before September” = it will be done prior to September 1.

    The Japanese terms are used like that.

    Thomas

84. Tony Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 10:37 pm

    What Thomas says is correct. Thanks

85. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 10:54 pm

    Sorry, didn’t think that one through – the lumping together of by and before got me going.

    You’re asking about までに「迄に」 where the に ending makes a big difference. This focuses it on the time endpoint, i.e. stresses that it HAS to be done by then.

    The whole までに「迄に」 expression can also be used as an add/on to a verb [even after nouns] to stress the effort or time required to complete the topic at hand. Example:

    大学　までに　(彼は)　あきらめてしまう　かも　知れない
    (He) might give up before getting to university.

    The pronoun (he) is often not used.

    Thomas

86. KomaGawa Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 8:39 am

    I asked our two daughters (whose English is so-so, but better than asking my other students) and their quick reaction was that both are interchangeable, and までに　is far more often used than 前に. This somewhat surprised me. As I assumed both would be equally prevelant in usage. My second thought still is surprised by that reaction of frequency.

    Maybe, Thomas I can see your “point”. I think my confusion occurs when the “point” of time is longer than a “point”. “By” in English could be interpreted as on Sept.1st, as well as before the end of Sept. Thus, I think people would add some qualifier when they use the word “by”, as to say “by the end of Sept.” or “by the beginning of Sept.” to clarify nderstanding.Whereas “before” in English is less ambiguous, IMO. “Before” means “before”.

    2. Your kanji is interesting. I’ve never seen it before. My dictionary is irritating in that it uses hiragana when it believes it is being helpful to reduce kanji strain. Whereas I am focusing on being able to read, not speak (I basically have no one to speak Japanese with): so, thus far, I don’t mind the kanji load.

    3. I will resist making a joke about lawyers….I have known several Japanese law students, but no lawyers. Probably because Japanese lawyers are way above me in terms of lifestyle, while the students are not. ;-(

87. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 9:23 am

    The finer points might be lost on your daughters – unless they’ve spent at least a few years in corporate Japan.

    Your English commentary is mistaken – you might prefer your looser approach to be the way it works, but it doesn’t. Sorry, but that’s the way it is. Reference my previous post for the real distinction between “by” and “before”.

    The kanji for “迄” isn’t mine – that’s how it’s actually written. Yes, it’s not one of the 常用漢字 but it is in active use regardless. BTW, most hiragana Japanese actually has a kanji lurking in there somewhere. You need to pick up about 500 additional kanji beyond the basic 2,000 to be truly functional in written Japanese. That kanji is one of those.

    The legal reference was to distinguish between casual interpretations and strict definitions.

88. KomaGawa Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 9:12 pm

    No I have no particular preference other than to read with understanding.

    I didn’t imply that your kanji was other than what I said, “interesting”. That was my first time to see it. Perhaps you are trying to read too much into my English. I am not “testing” your knowledge against our daughters, etc. only making observations. I am a student, and you are….. a more advanced student 😉

89. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 9:58 pm

    KomaGawa-kun, unbind those boxers!

    I’m only interested in precise definitions. Most dictionaries aimed at the non-Japanese are sadly downgraded – much useful information is not entered.

    IMO, the only way to go is to take the plunge and start using one of the 100% Japanese versions – there are several that have the little “helper” okurigana above the kanji as well as reasonably detailed definitions. You just have to plow through a lot of bookstores until you find one you like.

    On of my favorites is by the publisher Sanseido. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanseido_Kokugo_Jiten

    The Sanseido was quite popular among my Japanese colleagues – in everybody’s top metal drawer… I can recommend it too.

    Here are some other slightly obscure kanji for you to chew on:

    人参
    只今
    零
    壱
    弐
    参
    拾
    戌
    酉
    為

    Then there are all the various 俗字 still in use – in handwritten Japanese that is.

    I stopped being a student – that sounds too organized for me these days – I’m just a learner now. A life-long title I suppose.

90. KomaGawa Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 2:26 pm

    Heeeeeeeeyaaaa! when it rains it pours!
    Too bad my brain can’t absorb any faster before I have to take a nap 😉

    next question: My textbook page which I ripped out to save for review says something like:
    昨日電車でいろいろ　話した。

    So my question regarding this sentence is that it was presented in the review as a representative for others. So, you know, there is no object for the verb, only an adjective modifying the missing objects. How do I recognize the other situations for this kind of missing words, (what is the linguistic term?)

91. KomaGawa Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 2:29 pm

    Ohh, I’ll print your email notice of the previous comment…. sometime tonight.

92. Tony Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 3:00 pm

    Hi Komagawa,
    This sentence can be used. Most Japanese converse this way to people they know well.

    昨日,電車でいろいろ話した。

93. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 9:37 pm

    I would add that omitting various parts of a sentence is standard Japanese – and not just with people they know well.

    Corporate example:
    この間,どうもどうも。
    例の件ですが、従来どおりに進もう？

    In the example above: When exactly did what happen to whom? Which 例の件 are we talking about? And just how did we do it in the past? Ref. the ever-popular 従来どおり method.

    All this omission can make it quite infuriating to listen in to standard conversations – if you don’t already know what they’re discussing, you’ll never figure it out.

    There are even unique hand signs and gestures unique to Japanese that are used to add “sensitive” content to discussions. Gestures that signify things like money, GF, BF, sexual orientation and so on.

    Japanese is built around ambiguity and the unspoken word – this is the culture component of the language. Suck it up!

    This is why – if you ever do simultaneous interpretation of business discussions – going from one language to the other can result in a lengthy explanation in one language become a brief half-sentence in the other.

    A final piece of advice – if your text book has English in it – don’t trust it to be anywhere close to actual Japanese. In real life, there is no “intermediate” level of any language.

94. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 10:10 pm

    Spoiler alert – answers to slightly obscure kanji “challenge” above:

    人参 – ninjin (carrots)
    只今 – tadaima (now/today, also used as greeting)
    零 – rei (number zero)
    壱 – ichi (number one)
    弐 – ni (number two)
    参 – san (number three)
    拾 – juu (number ten)
    戌 – inu (dog in the Chinese zodiac)
    酉 – tori (rooster in the Chinese zodiac)
    為 – tame (because, reason…)

95. KomaGawa Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 10:21 pm

    I see your point, my example sentence is actually a small spit in the ocean of omitted words. Of course I can see the dropped noun if I can study it in writing. I am nervous, as you allude to in the spoken realm where I am so dependent on translating every-single-word and then fitting it into a corresponding blank space of one word length….sigh, well not to worry yet. just continue along.

96. Alex Says:
    June 9th, 2009 at 2:38 am

    hey there.
    I’m a learner. actually I came up with the idea of learning japanese not a long ago.
    I have to say I’m not a english native speaker. I’ve learned english myself so Im not good at all. anyway
    I’ve a question. Im a bit confused. where should I start learning? I mean what’s the first lesson here? just send me a link or something. because you can say im stupid hahaha. honestly I have a bad time trying to find out where’s the begging.
    I hope you don’t find this silly.
    Thank you for reading this.
    Thanks for doing this site for all of us.
    Keep up the nice job

97. KomaGawa Says:
    June 9th, 2009 at 10:19 am

    Welcome to the club, Alex.

98. Alex Says:
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:54 pm

    Thanks KomaGawa. I’ll do my best

99. KomaGawa Says:
    June 21st, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    Sorry I haven’t given y’all a blizzard of questions, perhaps the rainy season is slowing me down? I am reminded of tales from Hindu mythology, there are multiple hydra-headed creatures representing my questions at every turn of the page or click of the dictionary, but I can’t stop and ask, just keep going on. I will eventually come back here and ask a few questions.
    regards from Saitama

100. ashime Says:
     June 30th, 2009 at 3:23 pm

     kyoo is today and kyuu is grades.. then what is kyou?
     will the meaning change if you read a word with “ou” from simply “o”?

     and about “wo” and “wa”…? “wa” is for a person right? “ga” is for a subject? but what is “wo” for…?

101. Tony Says:
     June 30th, 2009 at 6:38 pm

     Hi Ashime,
     In hiragana, “kyou （きょう）” is today not “kyoo”

     “wa” is a topic maker not “person” and “ga” is subject. “wo　（を）” indicates the case role of the phrase in relation to another word (used especially as a direct object marker)

102. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
     June 30th, 2009 at 7:57 pm

     If you have to ask about the difference between wa/ga – then it almost can’t be explained to you.

     It’s like trying to explain when you HAVE to use “the” before a noun, when it should NOT be used and when it is optional. It’ll come over time. At your current level of Japanese “gut feel”, Tony’s usage definition is good.

     Not being a grammarian, I’ll throw in a few examples:

     1 Kore wo tabenasai
     2 Kore wa taberareru/tabereru
     3 Kore ga taberareru/tabereru

     1 eat this (mild imperative/command/suggestion)
     2 you may eat this (permission)
     3 this can be eaten (ability, i.e. as opposed to something that should/could not be eaten)

     BTW, the “-rareru” vs. “reru” verb endings are a matter of preference – the former is more proper, but (outside school at least) the latter is perfectly acceptable.

     Tony might have more examples to offer on the somewhat confusing wa/ga topic. My advice is to watch a lot of Japanese movies/anime/”drama” (pick your poison) to develop a gut feel for them.

     FYI – you can omit practically all the wa/ga/ni/ue/to and other “grammatical glue” from spoken Japanese and it still works surprisingly well… Useful trick for beginners – and used selectively, it works in native-mode Japanese too.

103. KomaGawa Says:
     July 14th, 2009 at 4:07 pm

     Hello you guys (any women on this blog??) I really appreciate the illusion or reality that you are out there to answer questions. today, as I was studying I experienced a ray of hope.
     Just a single ray, and probably tomorrow I will question its authenticity.

     In any case I have a basic IMPortant need. A need that I cannot find anyone here to fulfill, (besides having enough patience and understanding to teach me Japanese 😉

     I need to know a goodly number of the polite expressions that Japanese folks use to express those rather formal acknowledgements in their interactions with others. I must get beyond the btourist level of ありがと、度いたしまして、　℃も、いただけます、ただいま、おかいりなさい、and maybe another one I can’t think of. I don’t have time now to list the situations. I will think of every situation and make a list and get back with you in the next several days. If I chose the wrong 漢字 above, sorry, I don’t have time to check it
     ｼﾞｬ ま炊きますね
     　

104. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
     July 14th, 2009 at 7:21 pm

     Oh, you don’t have time to check your kanji, but we should write you a list of expressions… sure, right!

     馬鹿に効く薬はない

     There are plenty of books written on the subject – go to your nearest Kinokuniya or Asahiya.

105. KomaGawa Says:
     August 20th, 2009 at 8:44 am

     while studying まま
     My dictionary gave me sentences I don’t understand the grammar and meaning differences regarding the ending verbs of these 4 sentences.
     1. My little brother　は　テレビつけた　まま　寝て　しまった。
     ２．　My little brother は　テレビ　つけた　まま　して　おいた。
     3. テレビ　が　ついて　まま　に　なって　いる。

     Also if you could tell me the kanji for つけた、and なって I would appreciate it.

106. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
     August 20th, 2009 at 10:10 am

     KomaGawa,

     This kanji 付く is often used for つく　but in this case it is probably more correct to use 点く if you absolutely have to use kanji. The second kanji has to do with lighting fires and turning on lights – probably good for turning on a TV as well.

     So many different kanji that can be read つく / which is why the hiragana “cheat” is handy.

     Your examples are just variations of leaving something on.
     1 – accidentally left it on
     2 – left it on intentionally
     3 – it is on – whether or not done on purpose or not

107. KomaGawa Says:
     August 21st, 2009 at 12:09 pm

     1,a,b,c.What　bothers me are the しまった、おいた and なって　いる. I am guessing that these final verbs are all auxilary verbs that must be use with つく to create “an accidental condition”, “intentionality”, and merely an “existing state”..?
     another question
     2. The English is “Only archaeological data can give us information on the ages before this….”
     My Japanese text says, “それより　前　は”…

     My method of study is to concentrate on the English first and see if I can come up with the Japanese based on my knowledege. If I can’t see how they came up with it, I try to look up the parts in my dictionary and see what grammar rules they used.

108. KomaGawa Says:
     August 21st, 2009 at 3:02 pm

     Ok, Let me explain. I have a book of short essay-like paragraphs, and although I have studied the grammatical forms I encounter there, I cannot come up with the meaning/logic quickly. So I am trying to create a structure to remember a few of these grammatical forms.
     The sentence I am using is:

     “I understood “X” when I asked the teacher.”
     I am trying to use as many grammatical forms as I can with this information. IF I have to change this basic meaning and sentence pattern in order to use a form I want to learn, I want to know WHY I have to change the sentence.
     The first 2 grammatical forms are
     １．S1 と　S2：　先生に聞くと　”X” が　分かった。
     ２．S1　たら　S2：先生に聞いたら　　”X”　が　分かった。
     so I gather that these have completely the same meaning here. of と　and たら。
     ３．S1　ば　S2：　先生に聞けば　”x” が　分かりました。
     If I had asked the teacher I would have understood about “X”
     ４．S1　時に　S2　（4 versions, And I have to change the meaning of the sentences because 時に is strictly describing a chronological relationship. so my 4 new sentence are,

     4a. I will ask the teacher about X before he explains about “Y”: “Y” について　質問する時に　先生　が　”X”　を　説明する。
     4b. I will ask the teacher about X after he explains about “Y”. “Y” について　質問した時に　先生　が
     ”X”　を　説明する。
     ４ｃ。　The teacher explained about Y before I asked about “X”. ”Y”　について　質問する時に　先生　が　”X”　を　説明した。
     ４ｄ。　The teacher explained about “Y” after I asked about “X”. “y” について　質問した時に　先生　が　”X”　を　説明した。

     So, I am thinking I could have used “Y” を 質問する instead of “Y” について, and it would have been more natural/less formal? The reason my mind caught について has to do with the essay I am reading about Japanese history.

     there are more grammatical forms using this basic sentence idea that I want to ask about but my brain feels discouraged from this great effort producing such a small amount of learning. Why does my brain feel so sluggish when I attempt to create my own structures for learning? Logically it would seem that personalized structures would be easier not more difficult to produce and play around with. BUt I have spent hours just struggling with looking at ways to keep straight in my mind these, and a few more grammatical forms.
     Whew, I’m going to take a break and go for a walk. see you later.

109. KomaGawa Says:
     August 21st, 2009 at 9:28 pm

     Ok, one more, which I should have included up after #2, but forgot, ば
     先生に　聞ければ　”x”　が　分かりました I am not sure if I can do this, because in order to use ば it must be habitual action, or counter factual case. So if I had changed “x” to “school policies” would this have made a difference?

110. Roy Says:
     September 22nd, 2009 at 7:59 am

     Sensee. Do you have sample conversation for ukemi (passive voice)? Tetsudatte arigatoo.

111. Thomas, Atlanta, USA Says:
     September 23rd, 2009 at 3:00 am

     Ukemi is a technique in Aikido .-)

     Otherwise, grammatically speaking – check this page instead:
     http://www.japaned.com/Files/Passive%20notes.pdf

     There’s much more to ukemi than you think.

112. Jim Says:
     October 2nd, 2009 at 2:04 am

     Hello! I just found your site by accident. I was doing a web search to understand the use of -tai to express desire or want, and here I am! I’m very impressed by what I see here, and know it will be a big help for me trying to gain some ability in Japanese conversation. However, I can’t find where your site begins. Where does it start?

113. Tony Says:
     October 2nd, 2009 at 1:30 pm

     You should start from Lesson 1

114. Nipun Kalra Says:
     December 28th, 2009 at 3:36 pm

     Hi, I love your website.. I just started learning Japanese from a friend. And thanks to your website, I can now work on my vocabulary and speed up the process of learning!!!

     THANKS!!!

115. ika_stormy5 Says:
     December 29th, 2009 at 9:13 pm

     Hello!I’m from Malaysia…
     I like your website….
     But I wonder why it’s so hard to learn kanji…?
     Arigatou coz willing to teach us by this website

116. Tony Says:
     December 29th, 2009 at 9:20 pm

     Hi ika_stormy,
     ya, it is not easy to master Kanji. Even some Japanese can’t master kanji fully. I believe, Malaysia do teach Chinese in Kanji at school, right?

117. ika_stormy5 Says:
     December 29th, 2009 at 9:36 pm

     yes,but just in chinese school…
     i’m studied in malay school..
     so they do not teach chinese or japan languange

118. Thomas Says:
     December 29th, 2009 at 9:53 pm

     If you’re in a Malaysian school, there are always Chinese study schools in the area. Learning Chinese is a good idea in Malaysia.

     Malay politics aside, kanji aren’t that hard. You need to think of it in an opposite way – each kanji you learn means you have one less to go. At least with Japanese, the number of kanji are limited to 2,000 (plus 500 older forms and variations that aren’t taught in schools).

     In other words, start with the elementary school kanji, go through each year’s set, and pretty soon you have mastered several hundred kanji. This means that you’re down to perhaps 1,600 on the standard list. Keep at it and before you know it you’re closing in on the halfway mark.

     It’s really only the last 300 or so that are tough.

119. tinpai Says:
     February 4th, 2010 at 1:57 pm

     hajimemashite, anthonet ~

     tinpai desu ~

     i’ve recently started my journey into japanese language learning. I rely mostly on japanese pop culture vehicles, such as jdoramas and jpop songs, and online learning sites for my jap language studies. I learn mostly conversational Japanese, and would have loved to know more about the grammar/structure — and here i find your site.

     it’s very helpful ~

     hontouni arigato gozaimasu!

120. Tony Says:
     February 4th, 2010 at 2:07 pm

     Hi Tinpai,
     Glad that you like the site.

121. Ashime Says:
     February 21st, 2010 at 1:17 pm

     eo! I’m so very greatfull for your posts. I learned plenty but sad to say I don’t get to practice that often. anyways, I would like to ask for your help, if it is ok… could you please translate this sentence into japanese? it is because I always get the grammar wrong thus making the meaning of the sentence worse!
     anyways, here is the sentence:

     “I see you but do you see me?”

     Thank you! More Power!

122. Andrew Says:
     February 21st, 2010 at 1:32 pm

     Hi Ashime,
     Anata ni miemasu kedo watashi ni miemasu ka

123. Thomas Says:
     February 22nd, 2010 at 8:58 am

     Ashime,

     Try “mieru da ga, mirareru ka na”

     見えるだが見られるかな

124. Ashime Says:
     February 24th, 2010 at 12:17 am

     Arigatou Andrew sempai and Thomas sempai!

125. Michael Reese Says:
     February 27th, 2010 at 7:43 am

     My wife and I have a problem. Our daughter is 17 and she speaks fluent Japanese. Lately we found she has been corresponding with a Japanese man who is at a minimum 47 he looks 67. Can someone please help us out and translate this message between them?

     PLEASE this is an underage girl.

     Below is her reply to his original email.

     Please help this frantic mom and dad. is this bad?? Is she marrying him? We looked up some of the words but are very confused. Please help us.

     If it is really bad please email us the translation so we can prevent our daughter from making a mistake. It seems she is saying please marry me immediately or something

     mou mail shinaide kudasai ate delna yorushiku onegai shimasu. ippai arigatou. sayounara.atashi mou sugu kekkon shimasu. ate delna yorushiku yo ne

     On Feb 24, 2010, at 10:43 PM, *******@docomo.ne.jp wrote:

     Cheryl chan konbanwa. genki nano?

126. Michael Reese Says:
     February 27th, 2010 at 7:53 am

     One more thing we have a 25 year old niece that lives in Japan. She is trouble and we think she is trying to get our daughter to go there.

     Thanks so much for any help you can give us.

     Michael

127. Tony Says:
     February 27th, 2010 at 11:16 am

     Hi Michael,
     Although some words may not be correctly written, I think your daughter was asking the man not to email her again as she is going to marry someone else. Most probably, your daughter used this reason to stop the man from emailing her again.

128. Michael Reese Says:
     February 28th, 2010 at 2:35 am

     Are you able certain she is not telling him to marry her quickly?

     Does it appear she loves this man?

     We don’t want our daughter leaving and throwing away your sports career in collegiate soccer and her education.

     She has been accepted at Duke for 2010

129. Ima Says:
     February 28th, 2010 at 4:08 pm

     Hi, thought of giving my opinion. I agree with Tony san. It sounds like she is asking the man to stop mailing her and told him that she is getting married soon. More like she is avoiding that person…

130. Michael Reese Says:
     February 28th, 2010 at 5:01 pm

     I am so grateful to the both of you. Thank you so much for all your help. My wife and I are so happy!

131. Michael Reese Says:
     March 2nd, 2010 at 6:23 am

     I am wondering if anyone here would be willing to translate some recent emails my daughter has sent and received since the last email I posted.

     As parents my wife and I are very troubled and so worried.

     My email address is mutualchemisty@gmail.com

     If you’d be willing to help my wife April and I understand what the communication is between this adult male and our minor child I’d greatly appreciate it.

     Thanks so very much

132. Michael Reese Says:
     March 2nd, 2010 at 6:24 am

     mutualchemistry@gmail.com sorry for the typo

133. Sreedhar Dv Says:
     March 23rd, 2010 at 8:19 pm

     Can any one share freeware setup for English to Japanese dictonary

134. Ima Says:
     March 28th, 2010 at 11:46 pm

     Hi,

     I am confused with the usage of “warau”/笑う. Can I use it for both laugh and smile? If yes, then how can we differentiate that? Thanks in advance!

135. Tony Says:
     March 29th, 2010 at 3:34 pm

     Hi Ima,
     Laugh – 笑う(warau)
     Smile – 笑む(emu)

     The kanji is the same but pronouns differently.

136. Ima Says:
     March 29th, 2010 at 8:26 pm

     Thanks Tony san.

137. Tony Says:
     March 29th, 2010 at 8:39 pm

     You are always welcome.

138. Wunsche Says:
     March 31st, 2010 at 7:56 pm

     What is the difference between onegaishimasu and kudasai?

139. Thomas Says:
     March 31st, 2010 at 8:17 pm

     “What is the difference between onegaishimasu and kudasai?”

     Depends on your age, gender and relationship with the person you’re talking with. Generally speaking, the “onegai” is used the more formal the occasion, the younger you are and the older more respect-deserving the opponent, and more so if you’re a female.

     Depending on context they are more or less interchangeable in meaning.

     kudasai
     onegai
     onegai suru
     onegai-shimasu
     onegai-itashimasu

     Then there are the terms – outside business, I think I use these more often than those above.

     choudai
     kurenai ka
     kuremasen ka

     Personal style also plays in. Kantou vs Kansai is another variant.

     So many ways to ask for things…

     Kudasai is a good starting point though – it is just a bit boring and lacking nuance (for my tastes).

140. Wunsche Says:
     April 1st, 2010 at 5:01 pm

     isogashii desu kara, terebi ga amari mimasen.
     Because I am busy, so I seldom watch tv.

     Is that correct?

141. Tony Says:
     April 1st, 2010 at 5:06 pm

     Hi Wunsche,
     “Isogashii desu kara, terebi wa amari mimasen” would be better

142. Wunsche Says:
     April 1st, 2010 at 5:47 pm

     Thanks mate, but isit possible to use ‘o’?

143. Wunsche Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 7:29 pm

     Can someone please help me regarding this sentence? What does it mean?

     Sengetsu isshukan ni kaisha o yasumimasu.

     This sentence realy bothers me alot.

144. Thomas Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 8:12 pm

     Wishes:
     The sentence “bothers” you?

     It means: “Last month (I) took a week off from work” although I would switch a little “sengetsu ni isshuukan kaisha wo yasundeta (yasumimashita)” verb form depending on context.

     Since the person you’re speaking with probably knowd you’re employed – this would be more normal: “sengetsu ni isshuukan yuukyuu totta (torimashita)” with “yuukyuu” being (paid) vacation.

145. Wunsche Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 9:00 pm

     Is it

     Sankagetsu ni nihon go o benkyoushimasu

     or

     Sankagetsu nihon go o benkyoushimasu.

146. Thomas Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 9:42 pm

     Wunsche wishes: first, go buy a book on Japanese – next, ask better questions – your syntax is way off.

     Here is the better question, assuming I have studied Japanese for about three months, what would I say in response to the question “dono kurai/gurai nihongo wo benkyou shita/shimashita ka?”?

     Answer: “sou desu ne, sankagetsukan gurai”

     “kan” is a useful add-on to time measurements to show duration.

147. Wunsche Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 10:25 pm

     Stick to my question. All you need to do is, tell me which of the two questions is the correct one to use.

148. Wunsche Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 10:45 pm

     You are not even here to solve questions being asked but to show off how well you can write and speak Japanese, and as well as English.

149. Thomas Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 11:00 pm

     Wunsche: Japanese is highly context-dependent – if you can’t provide context, the answer becomes a Cheshire Cat exercise.

     Both your sentences are incorrect – regardless of context.

     You have a suitable solution in my previous reply.

     Lack of knowledge can be corrected – ignorance is often lifelong. 😉

150. Wunsche Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 11:27 pm

     Incorrect? The question was provided by my sensei who is a Japanese. So are you implying that she can’t speak and write any better than you?

     7. San kagetsu( )nihon go( )benkyoushimashita.

151. Thomas Says:
     April 5th, 2010 at 11:54 pm

     Wunsche: See, there’s context! You should have said that the objective was to find the right particles.

     That’s your homework, not mine. Pick up your text books and figure it out.

     Japanese at the introductory text book level (your level) has it’s own peculiar grammar rules – once you start to use it in real life you’ll find out that what you have been taught was practically all useless.

     You can compare with the strict high school English rules – many if which can be disregarded in real English. Japanese is far more so – text book Japanese is quite artificial and unfortunately not used in real life at all. Like listening to NHK announcer Japanese – that has little to do with the real language.

152. Wunsche Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 12:10 am

     Thanks. Truly appreciate that.

153. Wunsche Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 12:15 am

     Also, from what my brother told me, the Japanese gave his classmates a strange look while his classmates were touring in Japan and said things like ‘Ja arimasen’ and ‘Sou Ja arimasen’. So my guess is, most Japanese or maybe all Japanese don’t say that.

     One more thing, what is the meaning of ‘Dayo’? I keep hearing that everytime I watch Japanese movies.

154. Thomas Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 12:36 am

     Wunsche: Like most languages, Japanese is age-, gender- and relation-specific. English has much of this too, but any language you grow up with is so close to you that you might not be aware of these nuances. Compared to English (esp US English), Japanese has all these aspects turned to 11.

     “Ja” = “de wa(ha)”
     “Dayo” = “desu yo”
     Both are contractions – Japanese is full of them.

     “Sou ja arimasen” or “sou de wa(ha) arimasen” is actually used – typically in a formal/business context – or for humorous effect, when used among friends.

     Someone using the “sou ja arimasen” expression while struggling with basic Japanese is the equivalent of a Japanese student at the “Harroo, my-u name-u is-u Kenji” level of English, who tries using terms like “affirmative” and “negative” instead of yes/no!

     Text book Japanese is unfortunately a waste of time – try to quickly move beyond that to read manga or anything real ASAP.

155. Wunsche Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 10:42 pm

     Hey Thomas, I understand that ‘Nan jikan’, ‘Nan nichi’ and ‘Nan nen’ stand for ‘How many hours’, ‘How many days’ and ‘How many years’. But what about ‘Which year?’, ‘Which day’ and ‘Which year’? What are they called in Japanese language?

156. Wunsche Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 10:47 pm

     ‘What time’

157. Thomas Says:
     April 6th, 2010 at 11:35 pm

     Wunsche: Context again – “itsu” would be the most common starter question for all of the above.

     If you really need to be picky about it – use these:
     Nan-youbi for which day – “kyou wa(ha) nanyoubi deshita-kke?”
     Nan-nen for which year (nan-nen-kan for how many years) – “kotoshi wa(ha) nannen da – seireki de?”
     Nan-ji for what time – “eetto – ima nanji?”

     Some casual examples after each.

158. Wunsche Says:
     April 7th, 2010 at 12:10 am

     Thanks, mate.

159. Wunsche Says:
     April 8th, 2010 at 11:32 pm

     What is the meaning of ‘Kobe e indo ryouri o tabe ni ikimasu.

     Isn’t it suppose to be ‘Kobe de indo ryouri o tabe e ikimasu.’?

     What do kobe ‘e’ and tabe ‘ni’ mean?

160. Thomas Says:
     April 8th, 2010 at 11:46 pm

     Wunsche: The “e” is actually “he” – particle, or grammatical glue, used for location- and direction-specific activities. The “ni” piece is used in similar areas.

     This is an area where insisting on English translations will only cripple your Japanese understanding – so much is idiomatic and the English equivalent will be different depending on context.

     For now, remember that it is always “tabe ni iku” never, ever “tabe he iku”.

     I suggest that you download a few anime episodes and pay attention to how these particles are used. More fun, and you will learn more, in a natural way. Playing Japanese RPG videogames is another good way to figure out particles.

161. Wunsche Says:
     April 9th, 2010 at 12:38 am

     Thanks, Thomas.

162. Wunsche Says:
     April 10th, 2010 at 8:00 pm

     Hi, I would like to know what is the difference between this two sentences? I still don’t get it no matter how hard my sensei tried to explain.

     1. Toshokan e nihon go no benkyou ni ikimasu.

     2. Toshokan e nihon go o benkyou shi ni ikimasu.

163. Tony Says:
     April 10th, 2010 at 9:04 pm

     Hi Wunsche,
     Nihongo no benkyō means Japanese study (Noun)

     Nihongo o benkyō suru – Nihongo (Noun), Benkyō suru (Verb)

     The differences of the examples you gave above are
     1. Noun Verb
     2. Noun Verb Verb

     For Example 2, “suru” => “shi ni” ; “taberu” => “tabe ni” ; “miru” => “mi ni” and so on.

     Hope this help

164. Wunsche Says:
     April 10th, 2010 at 9:08 pm

     So what does it mean in English. What are the differences? Can you please kindly translate it?

165. Tony Says:
     April 10th, 2010 at 9:12 pm

     1. (I am) going to the library for Japanese study

     2. (I am) going to the library to study (learn) Japanese

166. Thomas Says:
     April 10th, 2010 at 11:13 pm

     Wunsche: Your approach to studying Japanese is holding you back – your teacher/textbook is feeding you a lot of incorrect Japanese so you can find artificial “faults” that you would never see in real life. This is a doomed approach – completely misguided, and mirrors the idiotic approach the Japanese take when they learn English. “This is a pen” Reading correct language is the best way to learn – the brain responds well to this kind of reinforcement.

     Go buy some basic kids manga – the kind with the okurigana help text above all kanji – read that! Bring a dictionary and a notepad – take notes as you read along. This would be time far better spent.

     Also, the quicker you can transition to reading in some form of kana, the better!

     Remember that translations are never “correct” – something is always lost. Especially between languages as unrelated as English and Japanese.

167. Wunsche Says:
     April 11th, 2010 at 12:21 am

     Thanks for the advice, Thomas. Will listen to you regarding purchasing kids manga. What are the titles that you would recommend? And by the way. Could you kindly provide me with a feel example for ‘Goro’?

     For example: ‘Nan ji goro desu ka.’ But I need more examples. Also what are the difference between ‘Goro’ and ‘Gurai’?

168. Keane Says:
     April 22nd, 2010 at 10:01 pm

     Mata watashi no uchi de terebi geemu o asonde ni kite kudasai.

     (Please come to play tv game at my home again.)

     Is that correct or wrong?

169. Wunsche Says:
     April 26th, 2010 at 6:47 pm

     Hi I would like to know which is more widely use in Japan when saying ‘To’ – E or NI?

     Watashi wa nihon ni ikimasu
     Watashi wa nihon e ikimasu.

170. Tony Says:
     April 26th, 2010 at 7:08 pm

     Hi Keane,
     It should be “asobi ni kite kudasai” instead of “asonde ni kite kudasai”

     Hi Wunsche
     The use of “ni” & “e” is interchangeable when you are mentioning about destination. There’s a slight difference with “ni” being more specific and “e” is like “general direction”. Both are commonly used.

171. Wunsche Says:
     April 28th, 2010 at 5:36 pm

     What about I am going to eat lunch now?

     Watashi wa ima hiru gohan o tabe ni ikimasu

     or

     Watashi wa ima hiru gohan o tabe ni itte imasu

172. Lusi Says:
     April 29th, 2010 at 1:11 pm

     Hi Tony,

     Learnt alot from this blog…thank you for the interesting points and knowledge you’ve shared….enjoyed it alot.

     Just a question:
     Do you have any conversation like “meet and greet at the hotel” or “providing effective customer service at the tour desk” and “customer service as a travel agent”…??? Something on the tourism and hospitality industry.

     Much appreciated,
     Lusi.

173. Tony Says:
     April 29th, 2010 at 2:54 pm

     Not at the moment but will include into my list of lessons that I’m going to post later.

174. Wunsche Says:
     May 1st, 2010 at 8:33 pm

     ‘Gohan o tabemasu ka’ stands for ‘Do you eat rice’ I suppose?

175. Thomas Says:
     May 2nd, 2010 at 8:29 am

     Wunsche: that expression is more like “do you want rice?” or “do you want to eat?” – depending on context – i.e. whether you are sitting down to eat or if you are contemplating going out to lunch. The term “gohan” has a broader meaning: food. In male informal/superior speech you use “meshi” instead of “gohan”.

     Meshi kutta ka? Meshi ha? Mou meshi da! Meshi wo kui ni okou!

     The whole “gohan” business is somewhat academic.

176. Wunsche Says:
     May 2nd, 2010 at 2:28 pm

     Hi Thomas. What about ‘Anata wa ko-hi- o nomimasu ka’ I reckon that it means ‘Do you drink coffee?’ Since ‘anata wa maiasa ko-hi- o nomimasu ka?’ means ‘Do you drink coffee every morning?’ Correct me if I am wrong.

     Another question that I need help is ‘Sumou no chiketto ga arukede isshoni ikanai.’ Obviously that sentence is in plaln form. What should I say for the same sentence in polite form? is it ‘Sumou no chiketto ga arimasu ga isshoni ikimasen ka?’

177. Thomas Says:
     May 2nd, 2010 at 10:46 pm

     Wunsche: the kouhii question is like the previous gohan question – more “do you want coffee?”. BTW – try to stop using “anata” – unless you’re female that’s cringe-level gaijin-Japanese.

     The sumou question is technically correct – although in real life, you’d have a masu-seki ticket so you’d say “natsubasho no masuseki ga te ni ireta, issho ni ikimasen ka?”. Natsubasho being the summer tournament. No need to point out that it’s about sumou – that’s understood.

178. Wunsche Says:
     May 2nd, 2010 at 11:52 pm

     Thanks mate

179. Lusi Says:
     May 3rd, 2010 at 4:47 am

     Great explanation…wow.

     My Japanese teacher always encourages me to try to stop using ‘anata’.

     Love to visit this site.

180. Wunsche Says:
     May 3rd, 2010 at 5:38 pm

     Hi Thomas, how many meaning are there in ‘ii desu ne’ and ‘ii desu yo’? If I am not wrong, ‘ii desu ne’ means ‘Is good, isn’t it?’ and ‘Sure’, while ‘ii desu yo’ means ‘Certainly’.

181. Thomas Says:
     May 3rd, 2010 at 8:20 pm

     Wunsche: You are straight translating.

     “Ii desu ne” covers a lot of ground – can be very sarcastic or truly appreciative of some material possession or accomplishment.

     I’d say that “Ii desu yo” is more of a permission statement – “OK” or “Sure”- than anything else. The tricky part is that it is used for both positive and negative responses. I think this is of the reasons why Japanese (when speaking English) have a hard time getting the correct “Yes/No” depending on how the English question is structured.

     Q: “Mou tabenai no?”
     A: “Ii desu yo”

     Q: “Tabete mo ii?”
     A: “Ii desu yo”

     BTW, if you can provide a little context it’s easier to give a “correct” reply.

182. Wunsche Says:
     May 3rd, 2010 at 11:31 pm

     Thanks Thomas. Anyway, regarding ‘Koohii o nomimasu ka’, my sensei said that it means ‘Do you drink coffee?’ and she also mentioned that if I want to ask the listener if he/she wants coffee, then I should say ‘Koohii o nomitai desu ka?’ It is getting rather confusing

183. Thomas Says:
     May 4th, 2010 at 12:00 am

     Wunsche: Your teacher sets your grades – listen to her. For now.

     Once you’re done with the class though, you will find that much of the language is handled by speech inflection – you don’t have to use the “-tai” ending.

     A short “koohii nomu?” or just “koohii ha?” with the right tone of voice will do the job. So much is left unspoken – by slapping an artificial superstructure onto the language it gets “easier” perhaps – but in real life nobody speaks intermediate anything.

     My wife has an undergrad in Japanese from one of the top Ivy programs – when we met in Japan, she told me that she was so surprised at how Japanese is used in real life. She could barely understand it in the beginning…

     Trivia: there’s a kanji set for “koohii” – just like with “tabako” – typically all the Meiji to early Showa era words come in a kanji version.

184. Wunsche Says:
     May 4th, 2010 at 11:53 pm

     Thanks Thomas. Anyway, what’s the meaning of ‘Kaigi de nanika iken o iimashita ka?’

     ‘Say some opinion at meeting?’

185. Thomas Says:
     May 5th, 2010 at 12:57 am

     Wunsche: Note both past tense and relative lack of formality => a superior asking a junior staff member about what (the junior member) said (if anything) at the recent meeting. Not overly informal though so probably close in age/position.
     Using “itta” instead of “iimashita” would have made it more “bossy” or more informal – hard to say without more context.
     Using “go-iken” and either “gozaimashita” or “osshaimashita” (instead of “iimashita”) would have made it more deferential.

186. Lusi Says:
     May 5th, 2010 at 7:34 am

     Thomas could kindly translate the following dialogue for me, please.

     Reservations clerk: — Northwind Airways, good morning. May I help you?
     Mary Jones: — Yes, do you have any flights to Sydney next Tuesday afternoon?
     Reservations clerk: — One moment, please… Yes. There´s a flight at 16:45 and one at 18:00.
     Mary Jones: — That´s fine. Could you tell me how much a return flight costs? I´ll be staying three weeks.
     Reservations clerk: — Economy, business class or first class ticket?
     Mary Jones: — Economy, please.
     Reservations clerk: — That would be €346.
     Mary Jones: — OK. Could I make a reservation?
     Reservations clerk: — Certainly. Which flight would you like?
     Mary Jones: — The 16:45, please.
     Reservations clerk: — Could I have your name, please?
     Mary Jones: — My name is Mary Jones, that´s M-A-R-Y J-O-N-E-S.
     Reservations clerk: — How would you like to pay, Ms. Jones?
     Mary Jones: — Can I pay at the check-in desk when I pick up my ticket?
     Reservations clerk: — Yes, but you will have to confirm this reservation at least two hours before departure time.
     Mary Jones: — I see.
     Reservations clerk: — Now you have been booked, Ms. Jones. The flight leaves at 16:45, and your arrival in Sydney will be at 9:25 a.m., local time. The flight number is NWA 476.
     Mary Jones: — Thank you.

187. Thomas Says:
     May 5th, 2010 at 7:43 am

     Lusi: I certainly could translate it – but that looks like your homework…

     Anything in particular that you find challenging?

     Here’s some assistance: “flight” is “bin” so NWA476 would be something like “noosu-uindo 476-bin”

188. Lusi Says:
     May 6th, 2010 at 7:37 am

     hehehe…arigatō gozaimasu. No it is not my homework actually.

     I’ve tried to translate some but request if you could check if it is correct….dōmo arigatō gozaimasu. Correct me if I am wrong.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Northwind Airways, good morning. May I help you? Irasshaimase.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     Yes, do you have any flights to Sydney next Tuesday afternoon? Hai.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     One moment, please… Yes. There´s a flight at 16:45 and one at 18:00. Shōsho omachi kudasai….Hai. Bin wa ichi-ji yonjugo pun to loku-ji.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     That´s fine. Could you tell me how much a return flight costs? I´ll be staying three weeks.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Economy, business class or first class ticket?

     Mary Jones:
     —
     Economy, please. Ekonomi, kudasai.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     That would be $346. sanbyaku yonjūloku doru desu.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     OK. Could I make a reservation? OK. Yoyaku o onegaimasu.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Certainly. Which flight would you like? Kashikomarimashita.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     The 16:45, please. ichi-ji yonjugo pun, onegaishimasu.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Could I have your name, please? o-namae o onegaishimasu.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     My name is Mary Jones, that´s M-A-R-Y J-O-N-E-S. Hai. Mari Chones desu.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     How would you like to pay, Ms. Jones?

     Mary Jones:
     —
     Can I pay at the check-in desk when I pick up my ticket?

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Yes, but you will have to confirm this reservation at least two hours before departure time.

     Mary Jones:
     —
     I see. sō desu ka.

     Reservations clerk:
     —
     Now you have been booked, Ms. Jones. The flight leaves at 16:45, and your arrival in Sydney will be at 9:25 a.m., local time. The flight number is NWA 476. Hikōki wa ichi-ji yonjugo pun ni demasu, solekala gozen ku-ji nijūgo ni Shidiini ni tsukimasu. noosu-uindo 476-bin

     Mary Jones:
     —
     Thank you. Dōmo.

189. Wunsche Says:
     May 6th, 2010 at 10:14 pm

     Hi, I would like to know if anyone here understand this few sentences?

     1. Mira- san ga yoku iku kissaten wa koohi ga oishii desu.

     2. Kore wa haha ni moratta kooto desu.

190. Thomas Says:
     May 7th, 2010 at 12:56 am

     1. The coffee (but only the coffee, nothing else) is very good at the place Mira (mina = everyone) goes to. (It’s a contrived-sounding sentence though – don’t expect to run into many like it)
     2. This is the coat my mother gave me.

191. Thomas Says:
     May 7th, 2010 at 12:58 am

     Lusi: no offense, but, you’re in over your head – start with easier sentences.

192. Lusi Says:
     May 7th, 2010 at 5:07 am

     ok…thanks anyway.

193. Wunsche Says:
     May 8th, 2010 at 6:39 pm

     I have a another few questions which I needed help. I am not sure if I have it translated correctly.

     1. Tabako wa soto de sutte kudasai.
     Cigarette, please dont smoke.

     2. Wan san ga hataraite iru byooin wa koobe ni arimasu.
     The hospital wan works is in kobe.

     3. Watashi ga itsumo kaimono suru su-pa- wa yasai ga yasui desu.
     The supermarket I shop usually, have cheap vegtable.

     4. Otooto ga sunde iru apa-to wa ofuro ga arimasen.
     The apartment my brother stays have no bath.

     5. Kinoo watashi ga itta otera wa kirei de shizuka deshita.
     The buddhist temple I went yesterday were clean and beautiful.

194. Thomas Says:
     May 8th, 2010 at 11:46 pm

     Wunsche:
     Does your teacher a strict grammarian – or does she lean toward more natural translations? Regardless, you misunderstood a few phrases – look at the following versions and modify as it suits your teacher’s style.
     1. Please smoke outside
     2. Wan works at a hospital in Kobe (literally: The hospital Wan works for is in Kobe)
     3. Vegetables are quite inexpensive at the store/place (I don’t hear “supermarket” used much in spoken US English) where I shop.
     4. My brother’s apartment doesn’t have an ofuro (“bath tub” if you absolutely have to translate).
     5. The otera (temple/shrine/religious establishment – IMHO no need to translate) that I went to yesterday was both beautiful and serene (peaceful/quiet).
     *** Note that many of the original Japanese sentences are garbage – frankly speaking – and you will not hear such artificial constructs outside the classroom. Actually only number 1 sounds natural – especially if you add a “sumimasen” as opener.

195. Wunsche Says:
     May 9th, 2010 at 12:08 am

     For question number 1, isn’t it supposed to be ‘soto de tabako o sutte kudasai’ if it means ‘Please smoke outside’?

196. Thomas Says:
     May 9th, 2010 at 6:38 am

     Wunsche:
     Nope – “soto de tabako o sutte kudasai” feels weird.
     “Tabako ha soto de sutte kudasai” sounds normal – you could see that on the wall in a meeting room or other corporate common area or inside the local 7-11 maybe.
     You would abbreviate to “soto de sutte kudasai” if you see someone reaching for their pack of “mairudo”. The term “tabako” is fairly universal, you can just say “gomen, tabako ha soto desu/da yo” – it’s implied what you do with it.

197. Wunsche Says:
     May 9th, 2010 at 2:10 pm

     So ‘soto de sutte kudasai’ is good?

198. Thomas Says:
     May 9th, 2010 at 10:16 pm

     Wunsche: yes – if said in context – Japanese is very contextual – quickly becomes weird if you try to force a full subject-object-verb structure onto every sentence. Easier to understand yes, but unnatural-sounding. There’s a term “aimai” (roughly ‘fuzzy’) that sums up the language quite well. Another one is “higouriteki” or illogical. Enjoy it.

199. Wunsche Says:
     May 11th, 2010 at 5:12 pm

     Do me a favour Thomas and tell me if these sentences make any sense and what do they mean ……

     Atama ga ii desu. Hito ga suki desu.

     Takusan taberu hito ga suki desu.

     Takusan hon o yomu hito ga suki desu.

     Michi ni gomi o sutemasu. Hito ga kirai desu.

200. Thomas Says:
     May 11th, 2010 at 9:02 pm

     Wunsche: Taken in the aggregate – if read them all out loud quickly – they become quite funny. I can envision a psychotic glutton with a candy bar in one hand, a book in the other, mumbling to himself, throwing candy wrappers as he walks along the street, contemplating a killing spree.

     So yes, they are grammatically correct – albeit stilted in a text book sense. translations:

     (I/he/she/it) is (intellectually) smart.
     (I/he/she/it) likes people.
     (I/he/she/it) likes people who like eating a lot.
     (I/he/she/it) likes people who like reading a lot.
     (I/he/she/it) litters (throws trash) in the street.
     (I/he/she/it) doesn’t like people.

     The I/he/she/it part would all depend on the context, the Japanese sentences do not contain that information. They typically don’t.

     Also, all these sentences would benefit from either a “yo” or “ne” at the end – that would make it sound more like natural spoken Japanese. As it stands it sounds more like a stubborn 5-year old – or a student of Japanese…

201. Wunsche Says:
     May 12th, 2010 at 3:50 am

     Thanks mate. So it basically mean

     1. I like people who are intelligent.
     2. I like people who eat alot.
     3. I like people who read books alot.
     4. I dislike people who throw trash on the street.

202. Wunsche Says:
     May 12th, 2010 at 3:58 am

     What about these few sentences? I have no idea what it means – especially questions number 1 and 4. But I will make a guess though.

     1. Soto de suru supo- ga suki desu.
     Like outdoor sport.

     2. Yuumoa ga wakaru hito ga suki desu.
     Like people who understand humour.

     3. Pasokon o oku tsukue ga hoshii desu.
     Want table to put computer.

     4. Kaisha no hito ga tsukau nihon go ga wakarimasen.
     (Zenzen wakaranai…..)

     5. Haha ga tsukutta ryouri ga tabetai desu.
     Want to eat dishes made by mom.

203. Thomas Says:
     May 12th, 2010 at 4:03 am

     Wunsche: About your comments (#203) to my translations – no! – read the Japanese again, you’ve completely misunderstood # 1 and #4.

     They would have to look like this for your translations to be accurate:
     1. Atama no ii hito ga suki desu.
     4. Michi ni gomi wo suteru hito ga kirai desu.
     Note the difference.

204. Thomas Says:
     May 12th, 2010 at 4:23 am

     Wunsche: Don’t fall for the passive voice trap – English needs subject, verb, object. Japanese on the other hand sounds better with a few things left out.

     1. I like outdoor sports
     2. I like people with a sense of humor
     3. I want a desk for my computer
     4. I don’t understand business Japanese (the Japanese spoken at the office)
     5. I would like homemade food
     Note that “haha” isn’t really used outside gaijin textbooks and formal writing like birth certificates. O-kaasan, kaachan, o-kaasama, o-fukuro, haha-ue and other terms yes, but rarely “haha”. Same goes for “chichi” – use o-tousan, touchan, o-tousama, chichi-ue etc. All depends on whose mom/dad it is and if you are talking to or about them.

205. Wunsche Says:
     May 12th, 2010 at 4:33 pm

     Thanks mate, I shall jot it all down into my notebook.

206. Wunsche Says:
     May 13th, 2010 at 6:31 pm

     I need help for the sentences below.

     1. Kaisha no hito to tenisu o suru yakusoku ga arimasu.
     I’ve arrangment to play tennish with people from my company.

     2. Ginkou e iku youji ga arimasu.
     I’ve things to do at the bank.

     For question 1, isit possible to omit ‘yakusoku’? ‘Kaisha no hito to tenisu o suru ga arimasu.

     For question number 2, Why isit ‘Ginkou e iku youji ga arimasu’ and not ‘Ginkou de youji ga arimasu’?

207. Thomas Says:
     May 13th, 2010 at 6:56 pm

     Wunsche:
     1. Note that “yakusoku” = promise. The sentence really means “I have promised to play tennis with people from my company.”
     If you want to shorten it it would be “kaisha no hito to tenisu wo suru yakusoku shita” or “(mou) tenisu wo suru yakusoku ga aru”.
     2. If you change to “de” the meaning changes – like you have to do something at the bank, as an employee. The first version is that of a bank customer. Note the English “I have to be at the bank” vs. “I have to go to the bank” – they imply different things.

208. Wunsche Says:
     May 16th, 2010 at 12:04 am

     Thanks for your help Thomas.

209. Wunsche Says:
     May 16th, 2010 at 2:38 am

     Hey mate, need your help regarding ‘Dou shimasu ka’. What does it really mean?

     1. Hima na toki, nani o shimasu ka.
     When you are free, what will you do?

     2. ii tenki toki, nani o shimasu ka.
     When the weather is good, what will you do?

     As you can see, ‘nani o shimasu ka’ is used for the questions above. But the ones beneath are what I don’t understand.

     3. Sabishii toki, dou shimasu ka.
     When you are feeling lonely, what will you do?

     4. Denki seihin ga koshou toki, dou shimasu ka.
     When your eletrical appliance break down, what will you do?

     5. Byouki toki, dou shimasu ka.
     When you are sick, what will you do.

     Why is it ‘dou shimasu ka’ and not ‘nani o shimasu ka’ for question 3, 4 and 5?

210. Wunsche Says:
     May 16th, 2010 at 4:39 am

     One more question. What does ‘Yukkuri yasumitai toki, dou shimasu ka?’

211. Thomas Says:
     May 16th, 2010 at 10:07 pm

     Wunsche: The “dou suru?” ending conveys a sense of urgency/concern that “nani wo suru?” does not have. Note that all example 3-5 concern how to address problems.
     Also, there’s probably a transitive/intransitive angle – as in raise your hand vs the sun rises. You can’t control the latter.

     The 212 example means “what do you do when you really want to relax?”

     I suggest that you download or otherwise acquire copies of various Ghibli productions – Ponyo, Totoro for example – the Japanese used in Miyazaki’s productions are normal Japanese, clearly spoken. Much other anime (fantasy, scifi, samurai etc) has exaggerated or esoteric Japanese that you will have a much harder time understanding. Even series like Naruto has a lot of weird Japanese – and the available translations (e.g. those done by Dattebayo)are not very good. Try Ghibli – watch the movie over and over until you know the lines.

212. Wunsche Says:
     May 16th, 2010 at 10:45 pm

     I got it. Thanks mate. I will also purchase the anime movies you recommended.

213. Thomas Says:
     May 17th, 2010 at 6:57 am

     Wunsche: The first thing I did – with my first paycheck – after arriving in Japan (got a job in Osaka with a mid-size Japanese manufacturer, as an engineer, out of undergrad) was to buy a TV and a boom box with a CD player. I watched Japanese TV every evening – and listened to Japanese music. Great way to train your ears – as well as to pick up real Japanese.

     Ghibli’s stuff is mostly family-friendly – Pom Poko and Porco Rosso are slightly more adult – great everyday language in most of them though.

214. Wunsche Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 5:33 am

     Hi Thomas, are these sentences from the textbook correct?

     1. Tai e itta toku tai no shatsu o kaimasu.
     I buy thailand shirt when I went to Thailand.

     But isn’t it supposed to be: ‘Tai e itta toki tai no shatasu o kaimashita’? I do not understand why is it ‘kaimasu’ and not ‘kaimashita’ since it clearly stated that it was the past.

     Also, I am not sure if the following sentences are correct.

     1. Nihon e kuru toki, nihon no hikooki de kimashita.

     2. Byouin e iku toki, isha ni hanashite kudasai.

     3. Byouin e iku toki, hokenshou o wasurenai de kudasai.

     4. Kuni e kaetta toki, imooto ni nihon no omiyage o agemasu.

     I thought it is supposed to be past tense with past tense and present tense with present tense?

215. Thomas Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 5:55 am

     Wunsche: 1. sure, should be “toki” not “toku” – must be a typo.

     That sentence structure might feel weird – but it is correct. In my experience, not used too often though, YMMV.

     I’m not a prescriptive grammarian, can’t tell you why it is used that way – perhaps Tony can weigh in?

     This is a bit like “I will have finished my lunch when we meet at 1PM on Monday next week” – that puzzles the Japanese.

216. Tony Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 7:26 pm

     Hi Wunsche,
     Your textbook is definitely wrong. You are right, it has to be past tense. The mistake will be either “iku” instead of “itta” or “kaimashita” instead of “kaimasu”

     If you want to use both present and past tense together, it should be written as “Tai e ittara, tai no shatsu o kaimasu”. The “Tai e ittara” is not “already went to Thai” instead “You have not go yet but telling someone that you will buy the shirt when you go there”

     “Nihon no hikōki” should be “nihon kōkū”

217. Thomas Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 8:24 pm

     Tony,
     It’s been a good number of years since I looked at my Japanese grammar books (Japanese-Japanese ones) but I recall there being an unusual (to me – i.e. hadn’t heard it used) construct which mixed a conditional (“-ttara” perhaps?) and a past tense. I can’t say I’ve experienced it outside the text book, but Wunsche’s examples brought back memories of those books.

     I’m skating on thinner ice here since I have a tendency to only recall what I have heard in real live use.

     The “normal” approach is of course what you said, the conditional (-ttara) and a non-past tense verb. “Sushi-ya he ittara, zehi mo sashimi wo tameshite mimashou!”

218. Tony Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 8:36 pm

     Hi Thomas,
     In Wunsche’s example, I don’t think it is usable with a present tense “kaimasu”. Well, sometime, Japanese do speaks wrongly although it is their mother-tongue. This happens to everyone 😉

219. Thomas Says:
     May 19th, 2010 at 8:46 pm

     Tony,
     I agree completely with your thoughts – conditional + present tense is easy to follow. I just have a nagging feeling my books had a construct along Wunsche’s lines which “felt” completely backwards but was correct. I’ll get back to you if I find it again, after I have unpacked those books.

     To Wunsche – there’s unfortunately a good deal that you are being taught right now that has little bearing on real Japanese. The teacher sets the grade – she be de boss. Let us know what you think of the Japanese in the Ghibli films.

220. Tony Says:
     May 20th, 2010 at 9:04 am

     Hi Thomas,
     Thank you. Really appreciate your time on sharing your knowledge.

221. Thomas Says:
     May 20th, 2010 at 9:14 am

     Tony: My pleasure – you don’t know it until you’ve taught it, right?

     I think it’s time to clean up this feedback page.

222. Wunsche Says:
     May 21st, 2010 at 8:16 pm

     Thanks for the help, mates. I need more time to analyze what I have learnt.

223. Wunsche Says:
     May 22nd, 2010 at 10:19 pm

     Hi, I would like to know what is the difference between ‘Gakkou made douyatte ikimasu ka.’ and ‘Douyatte gakkou e ikimasu ka.’?

224. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 6:05 am

     I have two questions which I cannot figure it out what it really mean.

     1. Ano kousaten o watatte kudasai.
     ‘Please cross that intersection?’ It sounds very strange to me though.

     2. Kuruma ni ki o tsukete kudasai.

     I understand that ‘ki o tsukete kudasai’ means ‘take care please.’ but not sure what it means when ‘Kuruma ni’ is added behind.

     And can someone please do me a favour and help me out with post 224 as well? Thanks

225. Thomas Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 7:00 am

     Wunsche:
     About 224 – IMHO, rearranged syntax, that’s all.
     About 225 –
     1. “Cross (the road) at that intersection (over there)” – perfectly normal – are you missing the content in the brackets?
     2. “Watch out for cars” – probably said in the context of advising a bicyclist.

226. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 8:04 am

     Thanks Thomas.

227. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 9:17 am

     Hi Thomas, I need your help regarding the meaning of these few sentences.

     1. Kanji de nihon go o yomu to, atama ga itaku narimasu.
     Reading Japanese in kanji and, head become painful.

     2. Koohii o nomanai to, atama ga itaku narimasu.
     not drinking coffee and, head become painful.

     3. Osake o nomu to, tanoshiku narimasu.
     Drink wine and become enjoyable.

     Direct translation will sound very weird, and ‘Narimasu’ doesn’t always mean ‘Become’ apparently.

228. Thomas Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 9:27 am

     Wunsche: I might as well give you my personal email…
     About these translations – quick “rules”
     J -> E: fill in the blanks and don’t fall for passive voice, remember to create solid English sentences
     E -> J: create blanks, e.g. skip I/you
     1. Reading kanji makes my head hurt
     2. I get a headache if I skip (don’t have/drink) coffee
     3. Alcohol makes it more entertaining

     If the translations are done for a teacher who is intent on literal translations, well, that’s another issue.

229. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 9:42 am

     ‘Wunsche: I might as well give you my personal email…’ That would be nice, of cos.

     Anyway, it is very confusing as ‘narimasu’ doesn’t always refer to become. Same goes to ‘ga arimasu’. For example:

     1. Massugu iku to, migi ni yuubinkyoku ga arimasu.
     Go straight ahead and you will see the post office at the right side.
     Direct translation – Go straight ahead and have post office at the right side.

     2. Hashi o wataru to, hidari ni byouin ga arimasu.

     Cross the bridge and you will see the hospital at the left side.
     Direct translation – Cross the bridge and have hospital at the left side.

     3. Eki kara massugu iku to, shingoo ga arimasu.

     Go straight ahead from the station and you will see the traffic light.

     Direct translation – Go straight ahead from the station and have traffic light.

230. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

     Also, what is the meaning of ‘Osaka de hikkoshi shimasu’ and ‘Kaban o koko ni okimasu.’? I thought it is supposed to be ‘Osaka e hikkoshi shimasu’ and ‘Koko ni kaban o okimasu.’?

231. Thomas Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 10:09 pm

     Wunsche: Are you sure that’s not a setup question? “(place) he hikkosu” would be normal.

     The other one is just another syntax – more normal actually. Your example is stilted – unless you’re scolding someone who’s leaving their bag in the wrong place – something like “koko ni kaban wo okinasai!” or more usual, in the negative “asoko ni kaban oku na!” or in textbook or twit-Japanese “asoko ni kaban ha okanaide kudasai”

232. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 10:16 pm

     Thanks Thomas. I was actually discussing with my little brother and he said that it was ‘de’ while I feel that it is either ‘e’ or ‘ni’. Guess I got it right this time.

233. Wunsche Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 10:27 pm

     By the way, Thomas. Does ‘Kaban o koko ni okimasu’ mean ‘Bag put here’ or ‘put here, bag.’?

234. Thomas Says:
     May 25th, 2010 at 11:03 pm

     Wunsche: Do either of those English sentences actually make sense to you…?

     Translating as “put bag here” is robotic at best and sounds downright retarded – the Japanese has more nuances built into it.

     It has more of a “(You can) put your bag(s) here”

     The sentence is artificial, normal Japanese would be more like one of these:
     “kaban wo koko ni oite kudasai”
     or simply
     “kaban ha koko ni”

     Remember the omission – you have to be creative when you translate – fill in the blanks.
     Remember also that Japanese has no real plural or singular distinction. “Kaban” means both bags and bag at the same time.

     Good translation is like fish soup – a good chef can start out with a fresh fish and create a tasty fish soup – but he can’t reverse the process. A translation that is perfectly reversible is impossible. If your teacher tries to teach that way, change teachers.

235. Wunsche Says:
     May 26th, 2010 at 8:26 pm

     Hi Thomas, am I right to say that ‘Kono botan o osu to, satoo ga ooi desu.’ and Kono botan o osu to, miruku ga sukunai desu.’ are equivalent to ‘Press this button for more sugar.’ and ‘Press this button for less milk.’?

236. Thomas Says:
     May 26th, 2010 at 9:22 pm

     Wunsche: Nope – the verb + “to” combo needs a verb- + “naru” or “kuru” or other ‘action’ ending.

     “kono botan wo osu to satoo ga dete kuru”
     same idea as the
     “kono botan wo oshitara…” construct.

     If you’re dealing with the manufacture of sugar, maybe “kono botan wo osu to satoo ga ooku dete kuru” since normally you don’t have button-operated sugar dispensing machines…

     “kono botan wo osu to gyuunyuu (miruku) ga hete iku”

     If you’re talking about settings on a commercial coffee machine it would be something like：
     “satoo oome” or “sato sukuname” or “satoo nashi”
     “gyuunyuu oome” or “gyuunyuu sukuname” or “burakku” – the last means no milk of course.
     Many variations depending on if there’s room to write more on the machine in questions.

     Here’s a good resource for antonyms: http://hanntaigo.main.jp/

237. Wunsche Says:
     May 28th, 2010 at 1:22 am

     Thanks Thomas. Anyway, any idea what does ‘Tokei ga ugokimasu’?

     The textbook states that ‘Ugokimasu’ = move, work. So I was thinking could it be ‘Adjusting the clock?’

238. Thomas Says:
     May 28th, 2010 at 2:38 am

     Wunsche: “The clock is working” i.e. it’s not broken (which was probably the assumption).

     Adjusting a clock would be “tokei wo chousei suru”　or more commonly perhaps “jikan wo chousei suru”.

239. Thomas Says:
     May 28th, 2010 at 2:44 am

     Wunsche: Try to pick up on the “infinitive” verb forms – e.g. ugoku, nomu, hashiru, osu, harau, oyogu – relying on the -masu ending is crippling if your goal is to understand everyday Japanese.

     Have you tried the movies I suggested? Note the near total absence of -masu verb endings.

240. Wunsche Says:
     May 29th, 2010 at 4:24 pm

     Hi Thomas. Yeah, I watched one of the movies by Ghibli films – Kiki’s Delivery Service. I noticed that the movie used ‘Plain form’ most of the time rather than ‘Polite form’.

241. Thomas Says:
     May 29th, 2010 at 8:12 pm

     Wunsche: The movie might not have been your cup of tea story-wise – but that’s real Japanese.

     The whole “plain/polite” form is a textbook construct aimed to simplify grammar – but it’s nonsense. “Polite” form becomes rude or at least arrogant, and plain becomes polite all depending on the social context. Perhaps Tony can weigh in as well?

     BTW, I have heard that form called “masu-kei” but “mizen-kei” 未然形（みぜんけい） seems to be the real label.
     http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%AA%E7%84%B6%E5%BD%A2

     “Keigo” comprises balancing the verb form and sentences based on social context – the -masu ending is a tool in that game. Perhaps thinking of it as a candle guiding you through the pitch-black forest is a good analogy – it’s better than nothing.

     A quick search gave me this English reference – looks good: http://forums.animecouncil.net/useful-information/kryss-no-nihongo-benkyou-thread-reborn!!!/
     Check his verb ending section.

     Long post – my main point is just that you should focus on real Japanese asap – the other stuff just breeds bad habits. It can take some Anglo speakers of Japanese years to shake that habit – if ever.

242. Thomas Says:
     May 29th, 2010 at 8:16 pm

     Wunsche: It happened again – I had a long post disappear when I submitted it – no trace. Something is wrong with the comment section on this site.

     I’m not going to recreate the post – suffice to say that what you heard in the Kiki movie is real Japanese the sooner you switch to learning that. the better. The rest just breeds bad habits.

243. Wunsche Says:
     May 30th, 2010 at 1:56 am

     Yeah, this explain why I will copy what I have typed first before I hit the button ‘Submit Comment’. Thanks for your effort.

244. Omar Says:
     May 30th, 2010 at 1:59 am

     hi there,

     I got a quick question, do you know what ths mean (Itsudemo midari ni shimaru, Itsudemo midari ni kaihou)

     Please let me know

245. Redmoon Says:
     May 30th, 2010 at 2:42 am

     Hi,

     You lessons are great.
     Can you help me with something please?
     What does this – 私はいかに恋してはいけないか。 – mean? Does it even mean anything?

     Thanks.

246. Wunsche Says:
     May 31st, 2010 at 6:26 pm

     Hi Thomas. What is the difference between shuuri shimasu and naoshimasu?

247. Thomas Says:
     May 31st, 2010 at 9:06 pm

     Wunsche: Sort of the difference between “repair” and “heal”. 修理 and 直す. One is based on two kanji, the other is a kun-yomi or “native Japanese” word. As a guide, think of the first as machanical, physical fixes, and the latter as biological and relationship fixes. There is overlap in usage though so that is a simplistic explanation.

248. Thomas Says:
     May 31st, 2010 at 9:10 pm

     Redmoon: No offense but anything with 恋 in it comes from lyrics or maybe TV “dorama” – and I only do real Japanese, not poetry.

249. Wunsche Says:
     June 1st, 2010 at 8:37 pm

     Got it. Thanks Thomas.

250. Wunsche Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 5:50 pm

     Hi thomas, I have a few question regarding particles ‘o’, ‘ni’ and ‘ga’ in -masu form.

     Biza ga irimasu – Require Visa

     Otsuri ga demasu

     Kaasoru ga ugokimasu – Move the Cursor

     Sensei ni kikimasu – Ask teacher

     Doa ni sawarimasu – Touch the door

     Hoteru ni tomarimasu – Stay in hotel

     Yama ni noborimasu – Climb the mountain

     Fukuro ni iremasu – Put into a sack

     I am just curious why is it ‘ga’ and ‘ni’ and not ‘o’ for the above sentences? It will be so much more easier to understand if it comes with just ‘o’ like Pan o tabemasu, Koohii o nomimasu etc.

251. Thomas Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 6:22 pm

     Wunsche: First, your English sentences aren’t complete – they sound like restroom signs or commands – where is the subject?

     Second, these things tell direction.
     Sensei ni kiku – I will ask the teacher
     Sensei ga kikoeru – I can hear the teacher
     Sensei wo kaeru – I will change teacher

252. Wunsche Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 6:33 pm

     Hi Thomas, I do not quite understand. Direction as in? And why can’t it be

     Sensei wo kiku – I will ask the teacher
     Sensei wo kikoeru – I can hear the teacher
     Sensei wo kaeru – I will change teacher

253. Wunsche Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 6:59 pm

     One more thing Thomas, I came across this word ‘Yondara’ which I know for sure it means ‘Read’ but what I am not sure is where is there a ‘ra’ behind ‘Yonda’?

     YONDA + RA = YONDARA

254. Thomas Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 8:09 pm

     Wunsche: it’s IF you read – that’s what ‘RA’ adds to a verb

255. Thomas Says:
     June 2nd, 2010 at 8:46 pm

     Wunsche: try this page:
     http://lingwiki.com/index.php?title=白む

     Also, there is a “500 Jspanese verbs” book that you should get.

256. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 1:07 pm

     Thanks Thomas. Anyway, you were right, the way the actors speak in the animations you recommended it to me were different. Last night I watched ‘Whisper in my heart’ and I jotted down a lines and, I was surprise to find out that ‘ashita wa yasumi ne’ can also means ‘I am going to skip school tomorrow’.

257. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 1:10 pm

     Different from what I learnt from school I meant. Also, there was one part which says ‘Doko iku no?'(where are you going?). I was wondering where is there a need to add ‘no’ behind ‘Doko iku’?

258. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 1:45 pm

     Come to think of it, is the ‘no’ in ‘Doko iku no’ actually means a question mark?

     For example, ‘Do shimasu ka’ (Do suru no?), ‘Nani o shimasu ka’ (Nani o suru no?)

259. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 3:20 pm

     Osaka ni iku no biza ga irimasu.
     (You need visa to go to osaka)

     Is that correct?

260. Tony Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 3:40 pm

     Wunsche,
     You are right, this is what “no” means in youor example. This is a casual way of conversation.

     Osaka ni iku no biza ga irimasu – the “no” should be changed to “to” – Osaka ni iku to biza ga irimasu

261. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 4:50 pm

     Thanks Tony.

262. Wunsche Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 4:56 pm

     Anyway. I understand that I can just say ‘Koohii nomu?’ when asking if someone want to drink coffee. But what about ‘Koohii nomu no?’

263. Thomas Says:
     June 3rd, 2010 at 9:24 pm

     Wunsche: ‘Koohii nomu no?’ is a slightly surprised question – “(I didn’t know that) you drink coffee?” or if someone has a cup of coffee at a bar.

264. Wunsche Says:
     June 4th, 2010 at 9:56 am

     Based on your replied, I assume that I can’t say that then ; )

265. Wunsche Says:
     June 4th, 2010 at 2:19 pm

     A few questions mates.

     Depaato e itte, shatsu o kaimasu.

     Depaato e/ni shatsu o kau ni ikimasu.

     I assume that both the sentences above are the same? And can someone give me simple examples for each of these words below please?

     Yakuni tachimasu, Kachimasu, Omoidashimasu, Kaeshimasu, Sawarimasu, Naoshimasu, Mawashimasu, Yobimasu, Kaemasu, Kuremasu, Shirabemasu, Tarimasu.

266. Wunsche Says:
     June 7th, 2010 at 10:57 am

     Ma … It looks like no one is willing to help. All good though. I will try to figure it out by watching tv series.

267. Thomas Says:
     June 7th, 2010 at 7:58 pm

     Wunsche: use the core verb forms instead and separate out the particles – e.g. “Yaku ni tatsu” = helpful, come in handy. No dictionary yet? Time to get one.

268. Wunsche Says:
     June 10th, 2010 at 11:58 am

     Can someone kindly explain to me what exactly are Futusuu (Local train), Kyuukou (Rapid train) and Tokkyuu (Express train)?

     I understand that there are Densha (Train), Chikatetsu (Subway train), Shinkansen (Bullet train) and know what those are but what exactly are the differences between them from those 3 above?

269. Thomas Says:
     June 10th, 2010 at 7:54 pm

     Wunsche: What’s left to explain? Google isn’t working for you?

     A good number of private, national and local government owned outfits operate fixed rail in Japan. The biggest is JR:
     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Railways_Group

     From your point of view you can think of all of them as trains. They just travel at different speeds, have different ranges, stop at different frequencies, and sometimes have different rail gauges.

     Plenty of info if you google it.

     BTW, the train labels are more confusing than that, there is “futsuu” “kyuukou” “tokkyou” “shinkaisoku” “kaisoku” “shinkaisoku” – some are arbitrary and mere marketing posture.

270. Wunsche Says:
     June 11th, 2010 at 5:45 pm

     Ah, sou ka. Doomo.

271. Wunsche Says:
     June 19th, 2010 at 5:23 pm

     Hi, please let me know if the following sentences are correct.

     ‘Kyo wa, watashi no nihon no shumi no hanashi o shimasu.’

     ‘Today I will tell you about my hobby from Japan’

272. Wunsche Says:
     June 20th, 2010 at 4:38 pm

     Does someone here still have a little bit of conscious left, I wonder?

     Anyway, my next question is regarding ‘Shibaraku desu ne. (Long time no see)’. I was wondering if I can say ‘Shibaraku da na’?

     I doubt anyone will reply. Just trying my luck anyway …

273. Thomas Says:
     June 20th, 2010 at 8:22 pm

     Wunsche: I didn’t respond to 272 since you didn’t apply my earlier advice – walk before you run.

     About 273:
     desu ne
     da na
     de ne
     den na
     ‘ss ne

     All various permutations depending on region, gender etc etc. They don’t mean much per se – it’s about context, tone of voice.

     BTW, you have “shibaraku” wrong. It means things like: wait, in the interim, for now – a fairly idiomatic phrase. Example: “shibaraku no aida”

274. Thomas Says:
     June 20th, 2010 at 8:37 pm

     Wunsche: Check this book: Learn Japanese: New college text by John Young, Kimiko Nakajima-Okano

     It looks like it is written with real Japanese in mind – not the artificial construct your teacher uses.

     Look at 2.4.14 – it covers shibaraku as well as “softness”: http://books.google.com/books?id=t96wBXtW_ncC&lpg=PA36&ots=hsNQZbIzRX&dq=shibaraku%20idiomatic&pg=PA36#v=onepage&q=2.4.14%20ne(e)&f=false

     That’s a very good explanation.

275. Wunsche Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 12:49 am

     Thanks Thomas. Anyway, regarding ‘Shibaraku desu ne’, it is from my textbook ‘Minna no Nihongo’.

276. Thomas Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 2:22 am

     Wunsche: I think we’ve established that your text book teaches simplified Japanese.

277. Wunsche Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 3:36 am

     I do feel that watching Japanese animations and dramas help alot. They rarely used the ‘Masu’ form. For example: Doo suru no?/Doo shimasu ka?(What will you do?), Kaeru no?/Kaerimasu ka? (Are you returning) Sore ja/Sayoonara (See you), Koitsu/Kono hito (This person), Aitsu/Ano hito (That person) etc.

     There is one interested part which I noticed though. They say ‘Doomo’ for ‘Hello’.

278. Thomas Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 5:26 am

     Wunsche: The “doumo” part is Osaka Japanese – oosaka-ben.

     BTW, “koitsu” is disparaging – not the same as “kono hito” – “aitsu” “yatsu” are other variants

279. Wunsche Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 2:12 pm

     oh, I din’t know that ‘Koitsu’ is derogatory. So I supposed I can’t say things like ‘Thomas san, koitsu wa kirei da na?’.

     And am I right to say that all Japanese understood the word ‘Doumo’ for ‘Hello’ or just people living in Osaka?

     To be honest, I prefer ‘da na / da yo’ over ‘desu ne’. The ‘ne’ word sounds girly to me. I may be overly sensitive though.

     I also came across this word ‘Nan demo nai’. Does that mean ‘Nothing?’

280. Wunsche Says:
     June 21st, 2010 at 2:28 pm

     The word ‘Doumo’ is so useful.

     http://www.epinions.com/content_1095344260

281. Wunsche Says:
     June 22nd, 2010 at 12:33 pm

     http://www.amazon.com/Learn-Japanese-New-College-Text/dp/0824808592

     Most of the reviews loathe that book. My guess is, it is way too complex for a beginner.

282. Wunsche Says:
     June 22nd, 2010 at 4:13 pm

     By the way, what are the differences between ‘Ichido, Nido, Sando, Yondo, Godo, Nando’ and ‘Ikkai, Nikai, Sankai, Yonkai, Gokai, Nankai’?

283. Thomas Says:
     June 22nd, 2010 at 6:27 pm

     Wunsche: All Japanese “get” ‘doumo’ – it’s along the lines of “ya’ll”, “do what?” and other Southern expressions. Understood but not used by all.

     About the “counters” – whole books have been written about those, get one. There is overlap but generally “-do” has the number of times meaning as well as degrees of temperature, and “-kai” can mean number of times but also the number of floors you’re on (in the UK counting sense).

     Fifth floor (starting with ground level) = “go-kai”

     Five times = “go-kai”

     Five degrees = “go-do”

     Just get a book.

284. Wunsche Says:
     June 22nd, 2010 at 6:43 pm

     Sounds good. Okay, I will get one from Amazon.

285. Wunsche Says:
     June 23rd, 2010 at 3:53 pm

     When people ask me ‘Where are you going now?’ and I want to reply ‘I am going for lunch now’ in Japanese, how should I reply?

     Ima hiru gohan o tabete ni iku. I doubt that is right?

286. Wunsche Says:
     June 23rd, 2010 at 4:09 pm

     Isshukan ni ikkai gakkou e iku. (That’s from the textbook). But how about

     Isshukan ni ichido gakkou e iku. Can I say that as well as the one above?

287. Wunsche Says:
     June 24th, 2010 at 4:07 pm

     Thomas sensei, kimi doko???

     Anyway, for 286. I think it is ‘Ima hiru gohan o tabe ni iku.’ no?

288. Sreedhar Says:
     March 14th, 2011 at 1:35 pm

     My deepest condolence to people in Japan

289. Scott Says:
     May 3rd, 2011 at 10:09 pm

     Blogroll doesnt work any more!!

290. Yael michaeli Says:
     July 5th, 2011 at 6:00 pm

     Good day to you,

     I am Yael and I am interested in link exchange between my site and yours.
     Link exchange is one of the ways to promote your site and is beneficial for both of our site.
     I have a wide variation of sites and would do my best to provide you with the link that is best suitable to you.

     Have a great day
     Yael Michaeli
     yaeli.aviv@gmail.com

291. john Says:
     November 30th, 2011 at 9:21 pm

     Hi,

     As I see your lesson break in Level 1 to level 5, does it follow the JLPT examination syllabuse ?

292. Tony Says:
     December 1st, 2011 at 12:37 pm

     > John, No it doesn’t.

293. anisa Says:
     December 6th, 2011 at 1:56 am

     hi,tony..this is very helpful.thank you so much.

294. Tony Says:
     December 6th, 2011 at 5:30 pm

     My pleasure, Anisa

295. erin Says:
     February 2nd, 2012 at 5:06 pm

     sensei… arigatou gozaimasu.

296. Claudio Hagi Says:
     February 21st, 2012 at 6:18 pm

     I would like you to translate this song:
     watashi watashi wa
     totemo shiawase ne
     anata no ai ni
     tsutsumarete iru kara
     konya wa mou hanasanaide io
     yoru ga akeru made
     Futari de tsukurimashou
     utsukushii omoide

     I will be very thankfull if you can help me.
     cmh@netpar.com.br

297. Ai Says:
     March 19th, 2012 at 9:23 am

     こんにちは
     愛須（あいす）と申します。
     トーニーさんのウェブサイトは最高だと思うよ！いつも手伝ってありがとう！
     私はまだ日本語を勉強していますから、少し質問をしてもいい？
     学校にミニアニメを作っているが、私の日本語の話に気が強くなりたい。（変なことを書いたら勘弁してお願いします）例えば、この文は正しくないのか？

     「今日は、アニメについてアメリカ人を教えるためには、私は５人の日本人高校生へ質問をします。」
     (Today, in order to teach Americans about anime, I will ask 5 Japanese high school students questions.)

298. Thomas Says:
     March 27th, 2012 at 10:26 am

     Hi,
     First, I need to know which of the various English to Japanese, and Japanese to English translation sites you recommend for translating single sentences.
     Second, I need to know if your site has a list of polite Japanese phrases used in daily life ( you know, reference to greetings, departings, interrupting people,. I am not thinking of keigo verbs, but phrases which I can’t look up in my Cannon dictionary but I sometimes stumble upon them.
     For example, what is said to greet admin. staff in the univ dept. at the beginning of a new year. How to greet other older, senior professors, and how to excuse yourself from conversation with a group of professors at a party, etc.

     If you can help me with these things. I promice to donate money.

299. Tony Says:
     March 27th, 2012 at 5:26 pm

     Hi Thomas,
     Should you need any translation of single sentence, you can always post here or relevant topic for assistant.

     For the phrase, you can refer to http://nihongo.anthonet.com/category/conversation/ for assistance or post here for help in translating them.

     Thanks

300. Thomas Says:
     March 27th, 2012 at 6:15 pm

     From one Thomas to another,

     I suggest either using English expressions, or the typical Japanese greetings you’ll find in any textbook and – while using those – pay close attention to which expressions others use. Japanese is very contextual.

     A few expressions to start listening for would be “sore de wa”, “soro, soro”, “chotto” and “sumimasen/suimasen” – these are quite handy. You can get a good deal of mileage out of combining these.

     Thomas

301. patricia Says:
     August 9th, 2012 at 7:40 pm

     what does “Watashi wa anata o tebanasu koto wa dekimasen” means in english?

302. Thomas Says:
     August 9th, 2012 at 9:16 pm

     Patricia – did you pull that out of a sentimental enka song?

     Te (hand) + hanasu (let go) => tebanasu (let go)
     Two ways to write that
     手放し – let go – physically
     手離し – let go – mentally
     I could be wrong about the usage above – might be overly simplistic.

     There’s another verb hanasu 話す which means speak. Don’t confuse the two.
     Mudabanashi 無駄話 = chatterbox or other pointless yakking

     With the above in mind – your example says “I can’t let go of you”

303. patricia Says:
     August 10th, 2012 at 2:27 pm

     thank you so much for answering my question, it helps a lot.

304. patricia Says:
     August 11th, 2012 at 8:39 am

     please help again what does Dono yō ni sore o shutoku shimashita ka? Watashi wa hontōni odoroita. Sore wa hontōni doryokudesu. means?

305. Thomas Says:
     August 11th, 2012 at 8:46 am

     Patricia – I don’t sense much “doryoku” on your part – what do you think it means?

306. Thomas Says:
     August 13th, 2012 at 12:38 pm

     Hey Thomas,
     Good to see this site is still alive….I will be more obvious here sometime by the end of the year. I have spent some time studying Kanji, and I hope once I get this annoyance out of the way I can concentrate more on the grammar.
     Regards from Saitama,
     Thomas

307. patricia Says:
     August 18th, 2012 at 8:28 pm

     help me please what does this পিঠ ব্যাথা mean?

308. Thomas Says:
     August 18th, 2012 at 9:06 pm

     You need a Thai teacher – that’s not Japaneses…

     পিঠব্যাথা = Piṭhabyāthā

309. joseph Says:
     November 23rd, 2012 at 2:25 pm

     watashi wa firipin jin desu. watashi wa nihongo to eigo wa amari wakarimasen demo mina wa sugoi desu ne. gambarre masu.

310. Ursula Says:
     November 24th, 2012 at 10:23 am

     Great site! It’s very helpful
     Thanks a lot…

311. john Says:
     August 6th, 2013 at 7:41 am

     Hi, i’ve been studying japanese for a couple of years now, and i think your webpage is really useful, so thank you very much for allowing everyone in the net to get in touch to the japanese language in such a deeper way that very few resources are able to reach

312. AekaShiraki Says:
     November 7th, 2013 at 9:46 am

     Please keep maintain this site…
     it was a great help for dummy to learn japanese…
     maybe i can donate to this site some bucks..

313. Tony Says:
     November 7th, 2013 at 3:23 pm

     Hi AekaShiraki,
     Will maintain the site as long as I can. Appreciate for a small donation 😉
     Thanks

314. Tim Moorehead Says:
     July 1st, 2015 at 4:55 am

     hello,

     I am currently trying to learn japanese via rossetta stone. I am struggling to say the least. I actually can pick up speaking it fairly quickly but it takes a long time for me to understand the full sentences like beddo wa niko arimasu …like I knew beddo was bed but could figure out niko was 2…and It didnt seem like you could look up niko for a definition by spelling it like that.

     Just curious if you had any advice? Also, do you do any skype lessons or anything?

     Will definitely use this site though it is awesome.

315. Tony Says:
     July 1st, 2015 at 1:04 pm

     Hi Tim,
     beddo wa niko arimasu means I have 2 beds

     Ni = 2
     Ko = piece

     Please refer to one of my article for more infor
     http://nihongo.anthonet.com/pieces/

316. Chris Says:
     May 11th, 2016 at 2:41 am

     Would this be correct. Thank yo so much.
     I have a challenge with the “because” being at the end of the second sentence.

     sentence: I am learning Japanese because it is important for me to communicate with parent.

     watachi no tame ni ryoshin to hanasu taisestu dearu
     to iu, nihongo o manande iru karadesu.

317. Tanaka Says:
     May 11th, 2016 at 9:55 am

     It is better to use
     Ryoshin to hanasuru koto ga juuyou desu kara, watashi wa nihongo wo benkyou shimasu

318. Nandhini Says:
     September 23rd, 2016 at 1:23 pm

     Hi Tony san,
     I want to look into 30 basic conversation .How can I view all the 30 conversations. your site looks very useful for Japanese learning peoples. please let me know how to see from 1st conversation to 30 th conversation. Thanking you in advance.

319. Tony Says:
     September 23rd, 2016 at 1:40 pm

     Hi Nandhini,
     Go to : http://nihongo.anthonet.com/category/conversation/

     There are a total of 30 posts on this. I did not number some of them

320. Scott Says:
     October 13th, 2016 at 2:38 pm

     Hey Tony just wanted to thank you so much for this amazing blog and all the incredible work you’ve put into it. It has been an awesome blessing to me and so many others I’m sure. Thanks so much, yoroshiko!

321. Tony Says:
     October 13th, 2016 at 4:33 pm

     Hi Scott,
     Thank you. My pleasure. Please let me know should you need my advise.

322. Chad Says:
     December 17th, 2020 at 10:32 pm

     Just here to leave my mark on this historic site. Thank you for all the help.

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