mo ii desu & wa ikemasen
“mo ii desu” (can do something) and “wa ikemasen” (cannot or not allow to do something). You have to use ~te form for the verbs just before the above sentences. Rules : Verbs (~te form) + “mo ii desu” or “wa ikemasen”
Q : Can I smoke cigarrette? – Tabako o (suu)sutte mo ii desu ka?
A : Yes, you can smoke cigarette – Hai, Tabako o sutte mo ii desu (Positive)
A : No, you cannot smoke cigarette – Iie, Tabako o sutte wa ikemasen
Meaning : Tabako (Cigarrette), Suu (Smoke)
You can stop your car – Kuruma o (tomeru)tomete mo ii desu
Can I go back now – Ima, (kaeru)kaete mo ii desu ka
Form a sentence in English and try to use the above sentences.
May 30th, 2006 at 11:36 pm
Question! ^^ How do you connect the “mo ii desu (ka?)” from “ojama shimasu” is it possible?
Doumo ^^
May 31st, 2006 at 9:44 am
Yes,
Sorry for disturbing, can I come in?
Ojama shimasu, haite mo ii desu ka?
This is use when you are visiting someone.
July 17th, 2007 at 11:23 am
Hi. Is this correct;
No food allowed – tabete wa ikemasen
?
July 17th, 2007 at 11:29 am
Hi Lory,
Tabete wa ikemasen = Not allow to eat
You can use this if that place does not allow visitors to eat.
Hope this help.
April 24th, 2009 at 5:39 am
How does mo ii desu differ from koto ga dekimasu?
Thanks
April 24th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Hi Bill,
“mo ii desu” – Can I “do something”? (asking for permission or agreement)
“koto ga dekimasu” – Can you “do something”? (ability to do something)
Hope this help. Thanks
May 24th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
hi … i just saw an advert for oasis about duckzilla … very funny
i think he used ‘wa ikemasen’ like this…
‘koko dewa mizu shikanon dewa ikemasenyo!’
You cant drink water here!
i’m a bit confused on how this sentence exactly translates .. can anyone help?
May 24th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Hi Nathan,
I think you wrote it in a wrong way. It should be:
Koko dewa mizu shika nonde wa ikemasen yo
You can’t just drink water here.
Thanks
November 15th, 2010 at 7:12 pm
I can not understand
nakuttemo can you give me a example
November 15th, 2010 at 7:18 pm
Hi Kenji,
Example: “Nakuttemo ii desu” means I’m OK even I don’t have it
March 8th, 2011 at 1:45 am
Hi Tony,
I’m no good in Japanese and wondered if you could help out a bit. Can you translate
“I don’t want to”?
March 8th, 2011 at 11:01 am
Hi Christine,
Watashi (or Boku) wa xxxxtaku arimasen
Example:
1) I don’t want to eat (Watashi wa tabetaku arimasen)
2) I don’t want to go (Watashi wa ikitaku arimasen)
April 13th, 2011 at 10:48 am
In my reference book, there is also “mo daijoubu” and “mo kamaimasen” listed as variations. I understand they all mean the same thing, but I think the more exact translations could be…
mo daijoubu = it’s okay/alright to do
mo kamaimasen = don’t care/mind if [you] do
Also in the book,
-nakute = without/not doing
-nakute mo ii desu = it’s okay not to
-nakute wa ikemasen = must/have to
More literally, -nakute wa ikemasen means “it’s not okay not to” which is why it takes on an obligational meaning
I had to write it all down together before I could make sense of it
April 20th, 2011 at 12:44 pm
What is the word for “Missions” in Japanese?
October 8th, 2011 at 7:28 pm
I’m trying to write a song with some Japanese, and the key phrase is “are you ready?” … I have been told it’s ‘Youii wa ii desu ka?’ … is that correct?
Thanks! xox
March 2nd, 2013 at 9:20 am
hi sir can u help me? Can you translate
“mo ii desu, nakute, koto ga dekimasu.”
March 30th, 2015 at 9:59 pm
Hi,
can we use noun before wa ikamasen?
If not, is there another structure to express something mustn’t do which involves a noun?
Thanks!
March 31st, 2015 at 1:55 pm
Verb has to be use follow by “wa ikemasen”
Do you have any example in English which you want to translate?
August 13th, 2015 at 3:42 pm
Ikemasen is literally the potential form of verb iku (to go), right?
So, in a very literal way what you are saying is “you can’t go as far as to (and the action(verb) you’re not allowed to perform)”.
Is that correct?
August 13th, 2015 at 7:24 pm
Hi Fangst,
No, this ikemasen (いけません) is not converted from iku (行く)
There is no kanji for this word and it means unable / cannot do something